The Black Eyed Saiyan
by Siphyis Pendragon
Summary: Story has been postponed for a good 3 weeks or so. On the other hand, I'm 3 chapters away from 20! Yay for me!
1. The Stray

Chapter 1: The Stray  
  
Disclaimer: Much as I would like to, I do not own Dragonball Z ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Vegeta was walking home slowly from the grocery store. Very  
  
slowly. And carrying around 7 capsules filled with groceries.  
  
"How dare that woman make me do pathetic human chores..." he  
  
mumbled.  
  
"Stupid, stupid...". He kept walking. As he passed an alley, he  
  
heard a slight groaning.  
  
"Probably just some human drunk...." He said, with only a  
  
sidelong glance at the shadowed alley. He stopped. He sensed  
  
something.... a ki?! But that was impossible! It was too large to be  
  
human, but was to small to be anyone he knew. He took a single  
  
step towards the darkness.  
  
"Urgh..." came a voice. Vegeta stepped back again as a girl, about  
  
17, fell out of the shadows and into his arms.  
  
"Holy crap..." He said. She had a tail! But it was different than a  
  
saiyan tail. For one, it was a darker brown  
  
than it should have been, and two, it had black stripes! But  
  
through the differences, it was unmistakably  
  
saiyan. Ignoring Bulma's warning that if she found out he was  
  
flying around town she would kill him  
  
slowly and painfully, he grabbed her and flew off, back to Capsule Corp.  
  
  
  
Vegeta laid the girl out carefully on the couch. She moaned and  
  
tossed in her sleep. He looked her over carefully. She was wearing  
  
a loose red shirt and baggy black pants that were ragged around the  
  
hems. Her eyes were shut tight and hands clutched into fists. She  
  
gritted her teeth and made a quiet whimpering sound. As he looked  
  
at her neck he noticed a black mark. A scar? He thought. No,  
  
wait... He looked closer. It was more like a tattoo than a scar. It  
  
was a spiral shape. As he leaned in closer to look, the girl turned  
  
over and opened her eyes ever-so-slightly,  
  
but it was enough to see Vegeta. They immediately shot open and  
  
the girl pushed herself back as far as  
  
possible. Vegeta got just as surprised. He fell backwards and  
  
landed on his butt. He shook his head, to clear  
  
a slight dizziness, then looked up. Now it was his turn to go wide-  
  
eyed. The girl's eyes were pitch black!  
  
And yet, as he looked closer, they were filled with emotion.  
  
Through their irregular darkness, every  
  
emotion the girl was feeling was visible. The fear and the pain  
  
stood out the most. The girl suddenly shut  
  
her eyes and pulled her knees to her chest. She whimpered. Vegeta  
  
peered into her mind, trying to read her  
  
thoughts, but her mind was pure turmoil. All he could decipher  
  
was "Please, oh Kami, don't hurt me just  
  
don't hurt me." He smirked. She was afraid. Good. He thought.  
  
She should be. He got up and touched her  
  
on the shoulder. She jumped. His smile only broadened.  
  
"Open your eyes." He demanded. She twitched and turned her  
  
head, as if expecting a blow.  
  
"I said open your eyes, you pathetic excuse for a saiyan, if that is  
  
what you are!" He yelled.  
  
Her one eye opened slightly. She looked at him, then fully opened  
  
her eyes again, again in surprise. A quick flash of recognition and  
  
absolute fear crossed her eyes. Vegeta could only sigh from  
  
frustration as she, once again, passed out.  
  
  
  
She heard voices. Small voices, though. Not like his.  
  
"What do you think your dad's gonna do with her?"  
  
"How should I know? He never tells me nothing."  
  
"Hey! Shhh, I think she's waking up!"  
  
She moaned. The voices were familiar, but she couldn't place them.  
  
She couldn't still be here, could she? It was a  
  
Nightmare, wasn't it? It had to be. She couldn't be here. She  
  
couldn't be like this. She is, or at least, was, normal. Now... she  
  
had a tail and no pupils. How did I get into this? She wondered.  
  
She groaned, and flipped over onto her side, facing the back of the  
  
couch. She heard two little "eeps" from the opposite side of the  
  
room. She sighed.  
  
"...go 'way..." she mumbled.  
  
"Omigosh! Goten, she's awake!" one of them said. Dear Kami,  
  
is that Trunks?  
  
"...oh Kami..." she whispered. 


	2. Surprise, Surprise

Chapter 2: Surprise, Surprise  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own Dragonball Z  
  
Vegeta sighed. What were those brats yelling about now?  
  
Something about the girl?  
  
"Dad!" Trunks came running into the room where Vegeta watched  
  
TV. "That girl you brought home!"  
  
"What about her?" Vegeta growled.  
  
"She's...she's...." He seemed out of breath, for whatever reason.  
  
"Spit it out, boy. What is it?" Now he was getting angry.  
  
"She's awake!" Trunks said. Vegeta raised an eyebrow. The girl  
  
had been out all day. He had questions for  
  
her, a lot of them, but he hid his curiosity. He got out of his chair  
  
and walked out towards the living room,  
  
where the girl sat on the couch. She had her head between her  
  
knees and seemed like she was going to be  
  
sick.  
  
"Ugh, my head..."she moaned. Vegeta walked closer until he was  
  
right in front of her.  
  
"Get up." He ordered. She tilted her head up a little, enough for the  
  
pure blackness of her eyes to land on  
  
him.  
  
"Kami, not you again..." she turned around and flopped back on  
  
the couch. "I must be dreaming..."  
  
"How dare you disrespect the Prince of Saiyans! You should be  
  
bowing before me!" He yelled at her.  
  
"Oh stick it in your ear Vegeta." She shot back.  
  
Vegeta just stared. Such insolence! Anger started brewing inside  
  
him. He wanted to hit some sense into her,  
  
but instead, he took another peek into her thoughts. It was still  
  
mostly turmoil and random gibberish that he  
  
couldn't decipher. But he caught a few things, like Ow, my head...  
  
and Baka Vegeta Mister High-and-  
  
Mighty can't let me sleep. But the thing that stood out the most  
  
was: Dear Kami I can't believe I'm here.  
  
This is so weird. I wonder if... That was all he could catch. From  
  
there on it went back to randomness.  
  
The thoughts only made Vegeta angrier. He had taken this girl off  
  
the streets, and this is the thanks he got? And what had caused the  
  
sudden change in attitude? One minute, she was terrified, the next  
  
she was mouthing off and ignoring him. He shook his head. What  
  
could he do?  
  
He decided to wait for Bulma. Let the woman deal with the brat.  
  
Bulma walked through the door to her house. She had just gone for  
  
walk to calm herself. Vegeta had, once again, destroyed the  
  
Gravity Chamber. They took all day to fix. And Vegeta would  
  
probably be lounging around, instead of going to get the groceries  
  
she asked for. But maybe he had gone and got them. And maybe  
  
Trunks and Goten hadn't mangled or destroyed part of the house.  
  
Pfft. She thought. Yeah, maybe. The sarcasm was more than  
  
evident, as was the surprise on her face when she saw the grocery  
  
bags sitting on the counter next to the empty capsules that had  
  
carried them. Well, 1 out of two isn't bad. She thought. Then she  
  
noticed Trunks and Goten, with their backs to her, peeking around  
  
the corner into the living room and whispering back and forth. She  
  
came up behind them and tapped them on the shoulders.  
  
"Whatcha looking at?" she said.  
  
"Eep!" They both said, and flipped around.  
  
"Goten, stall her." Trunks whispered, then disappeared around the  
  
corner. Bulma stared hard at Goten.  
  
"Where's Trunks going?" she asked. Goten just stammered  
  
something about Vegeta and "letting him know your home.." Now  
  
Bulma was suspicious. She eyed Goten then tried to look around  
  
the corner, but was quickly blocked by Vegeta, who seemed to  
  
come out of nowhere. Trunks was right beside him.  
  
"Woman, you're home. Good, I'm hungry." Vegeta said, and  
  
crossed his arms over his chest.  
  
"Well congratulations, Vegeta, make yourself something to eat."  
  
She tried to look around Vegeta and into the living room again, but  
  
he blocked her.  
  
"Make me something to eat, woman." He commanded.  
  
"I already told you, Vegeta. Make it your self!" She shot a death  
  
glare at him. "I want to sleep. I'm tired." She pushed him one last  
  
time. He sighed, and moved to allow her passage through the  
  
living room. Heh, she thought, I've won again. But as she passed  
  
through the living room, Bulma noticed a still figure lying with  
  
it's back to her on the couch. It was obviously a girl, but the thing  
  
that stood out was her dark brown, black-striped black tail.  
  
"WHAT THE HELL?!"  
  
Vegeta winced, then readied himself for what was to come. 


	3. What's going on?

Chapter 3: No rest for the wicked  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own Dragonball Z. Sadly.  
  
"WHAT THE HELL?!" rang sharply in her ears. She winced.  
  
::..ouch..:: .she thought. That didn't help her headache at all. Not  
  
one bit. She reached up and clutched her head tightly. That yell  
  
sounded specifically like...Bulma. Yes, that was her name, wasn't  
  
it? She was pretty sure. Vegeta's...wife? Or was it girlfriend?  
  
Nothing was clear. She got up and turned around. A woman with  
  
blue hair was chewing out Vegeta. ::Yep, it's Bulma.:: She  
  
concluded.  
  
"Hello." She greeted. Bulma turned around to find her  
  
"houseguest" sitting up, eyes still closed.  
  
"You wait here Vegeta. I'm not done with you" Bulma threatened.  
  
Vegeta did his best to disappear into the next room. No luck.  
  
Bulma grabbed him by the ear.  
  
"Stay HERE!" She yelled into it. He twitched.  
  
"Augh! ALRIGHT woman!" He rubbed his ear, as if that would  
  
make the ringing sound go away. He kept massaging his ear as he  
  
scowled at the girl. ::Yeah, like it's my fault.:: She scowled back.  
  
Bulma walked over and knelt beside her.  
  
"Hey there. What's your name?" she smiled sweetly.  
  
"No offense or anything, Bulma, but I would prefer you didn't talk  
  
to me like a child. And my name is Celeste, thanks for asking."  
  
Celeste replied.  
  
"W-well," stammered Bulma. "Aren't you the outgoing one?" She  
  
smiled again and stood up. The girl opened her eyes and looked at  
  
Bulma, smiling also. The darkness of the girl's eyes surprised her.  
  
::Those eyes!:: Bulma thought. ::So deep, and so full! It's like I can  
  
see her soul!:: Bulma watched the flickers of amusement and pain  
  
swim in Celeste's eyes. To her, it was like a kaleidoscope of  
  
feelings. She stared for only a moment longer, then offered her  
  
hand out to help Celeste up. She readily took Bulma's hand, and  
  
stood up.  
  
"If you don't mind my asking..." Bulma said.  
  
"Yes?"  
  
"How exactly do you see, you know, without pupils?" She said.  
  
"Oh...I'm not really sure, either. I think that I can see where the  
  
sun's rays hit objects, creating shapes and figures for me. It works  
  
and all, but everything is in black and white. Which really explains  
  
why I'm blind in the dark." Celeste explained.  
  
"Fascinating..." mocked Vegeta.  
  
"Can it, Vegetable Head!" Bulma called over her shoulder.  
  
"Celeste, that is how you pronounce it, right? Is it alright if I run a  
  
few tests to check you out? You know, make sure you're ok, you  
  
look a little woozy, see if I can figure out how your eyes work..."  
  
Bulma asked.  
  
"Sure." Celeste agreed, smiling.  
  
  
  
Next thing Celeste knew, she was in a little room with some  
  
machines prodding her eyes.  
  
"Ow! Freakin' mechanical bast.." Celeste grumbled as one of the  
  
arms prodded a little too hard. She rubbed her eye. It stung, and  
  
when she moved her hand away, a drop of blood had stained her  
  
fingers. She looked up and saw Bulma enter jotting notes on a  
  
clipboard.  
  
"A little cliche, huh?" Celeste mentioned.  
  
Bulma looked up. "What?"  
  
Celeste chuckled. "Nothing."  
  
Bulma raised an eyebrow. "Well, it's time to eat, and you being  
  
saiyan and all, you're probably starving. I just hope Vegeta hasn't  
  
completely raided the kitchen yet."  
  
"Uh, right..." Celeste pushed away the machines that had  
  
continued poking her while they were talking. She followed Bulma  
  
to the kitchen.  
  
Vegeta inhaled his food, only pausing to take some sips of water to  
  
wash down the food he swallowed. Bulma talked constantly to  
  
Celeste, who only prodded her food with her fork, occasionally  
  
popping some into her mouth and sipping at her glass. When  
  
Vegeta finally looked up from his 7th plate, his mouth still full, he  
  
noticed that Celeste hadn't even finished her first serving. He  
  
thought about this for a second, but he was still rather hungry, so  
  
he let his stomach take over and continued stuffing himself.  
  
Celeste stared off into her cooked carrots, thinking.  
  
"So I was thinking...Celeste? Are you even listening?" Bulma  
  
asked.  
  
"Uh yeah...yeah sure..." she mumbled.  
  
"What's on your mind?" Bulma questioned. Celeste put down her  
  
fork.  
  
"How far away does Kakar...uh, Goku live?" Vegeta almost  
  
choked. He stared at her. Bulma looked extremely surprised.  
  
"H-how do you know Goku?" She stammered.  
  
"Better yet, how do you know his saiyan name?" Vegeta stood up  
  
and leaned over to her. "Are you hiding something?" He  
  
whispered.  
  
"I-I'm sorry...I'm not hungry...I think I'll go sleep...not feeling  
  
well....night..." Celeste got up and wandered off into the living,  
  
where a dull thump sound was heard as she collapsed onto it. 


	4. Shadows and Colds

Chapter 3: Shadows and Colds  
  
Disclaimer: Again, I do not own DBZ or any of the characters, except Celeste.  
  
Celeste rubbed her eyes sleepily. She had spent the entire night on the couch, and now her back ached. She  
  
Remembered doing something, or saying something, she shouldn't have. Her memory was fogged, and she  
  
felt like she was drugged. It took all her strength to stand, if only to fall back onto the couch.  
  
"Uhhhnnn...." Celeste rolled over onto her side. She couldn't bear to do anything this morning. She stole a  
  
glance out the window, at the rose colored dawn. It was barely daylight. No wonder she was so sluggish,  
  
not to mention nearly blind.  
  
She curled up tight. Why would she wake up so early? Normally she didn't wake until 10:00 p.m.  
  
She sensed something, felt something was wrong. And that something...  
  
...was right behind her.  
  
She flipped over and sat up, ignoring the pain that shot through her back. Someone stood in the  
  
shadows. She growled, and her tail flipped a bit then instinctively curled around her slim waist. She stood  
  
up, alert but still groggy.  
  
"Who are...you?" She mumbled. What was wrong? She should be in a fighting stance, ready to attack or be  
  
attacked, but she was barely able to keep her balance. The figure laughed. The laughter was familiar, but  
  
not in a good why. It was someone who had caused her pain, terror... The turmoil in her mind bubbled,  
  
trying to recall something it pushed away.  
  
"Celeste, do not forget why you are here. Not to play games. You know your mission." The voice was  
  
patched with anger and amusement, pain and impatience. Who could it be?  
  
"Who indeed." The voice was angrier. "You forget so easily." The shadow vanished. The turmoil hissed,  
  
then blew.  
  
Celeste collapsed.  
  
Bulma shrieked. "VEGETA!"  
  
The mighty saiyan prince stumbled into the living room.  
  
"What is it, woman, I was asleep..." Vegeta growled. He leaned on the door frame, running his fingers the  
  
his hair. It was only after he rubbed the sleep from his eyes that he noticed the saiyan girl passed out on the  
  
floor.  
  
"Hey, what happened?" The Prince asked.  
  
"I was about to ask you that." Bulma said. "I was going to make breakfast and she was just lying there."  
  
Vegeta kneeled down beside Celeste's unmoving form. He was still in his boxers, but Bulma was all  
  
dressed.  
  
"Well?" Bulma questioned.  
  
"Well what?" Vegeta snapped. "How the heck am I supposed know what happened?" Bulma gritted her  
  
teeth.  
  
"Well pick her up and bring her to the guest room. I need to make sure she's ok!" Bulma yelled. "She is  
  
apparently the last female of your race, don't you care that she lives?!" Vegeta, still slightly sleepy,  
  
shrugged and lifted the girl from the carpet, and followed Bulma to the guest room, where she proceeded to  
  
examine the girl for injuries. The only thing they found was a slight pinprick in her arm.  
  
Bulma decided to run a blood test. She took some of Celeste's blood to her lab, and spent the next  
  
hour scanning it for everything possible. She found nothing, except a slight cold. But that wasn't enough to  
  
knock her out, was it? She looked the virus over one more time, closer. There was something different with  
  
it. It had been modified, and slightly resembled a chemical used to put people to sleep.* How had it gotten  
  
into her blood? Bulma thought.  
  
The pinprick! Had it really been a needle? Bit it barely cut through the skin, it shouldn't have made it to the  
  
bloodstream. But if that wasn't it, then how?  
  
"WOMAN! I'M HUNGRY!" Vegeta bellowed. Bulma sighed. No time to herself these days.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* ~*~*~*  
  
Heh heh, Veggie-chan in boxers...  
  
Anyway, there wont be a new chapter for about a week. If there is know chapter after a week's time, proceed to bombard me with emails, that should get me off my butt. 


	5. Hot Wheels and Action Figures

Chapter 5: Hot Wheels and Action Figures  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own DBZ or any of the following characters  
  
except for Celeste. She be mine.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Celeste groaned. Where was she? She tried to open her eyes, but as  
  
soon as they let in the tiniest bit of light they stung. ::Ok, sight's  
  
out.:: She thought. Celeste moved her hands slowly. She felt the tug  
  
of sheets catch her hand as it traveled across the surface. A bed. ::And  
  
a rather comfortable one at that.:: She thought. Celeste almost  
  
drifted off again.  
  
She felt the darkness pulling her back into sleep, but she  
  
resisted. She had to get up, find out where she was, escape. But the  
  
pull was so strong. It was a chore to just stay awake, let alone try to  
  
open her eyes again. She turned onto her side, pondering what to do.  
  
Celeste listened hard, focusing on the silence, but then a child's voice  
  
cut through it. ::Trunks must be in the next room over.:: She thought.  
  
An idea came to her, and Celeste grinned maliciously.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Bulma finished putting the many dishes into the dishwasher, all  
  
the while grumbling about how much Vegeta ate.  
  
"If you wants to eat so much, he should wash his own damn dishes!"  
  
She yelled, and accidentally slammed a dish into the counter, sending  
  
pieces flying. Bulma sighed and bent down to pick up the pieces that  
  
had landed on the floor. She realized that all this stress was getting to  
  
her. She needed some 'alone' time.  
  
"Just some time to rest, relax, forget." She thought out loud. ::A  
  
spa maybe? :: She kept her thoughts in her head now. ::Nah, I could  
  
make my own. But that alone would be more work. Might as well pay  
  
to go to one then spend the time making one.:: She reasoned. Bulma's  
  
face brightened as she realized what she had to look forward to. She  
  
quickly scribbled a note for Vegeta (who was training in the gravity  
  
room, where else?), grabbed her purse and walked out the door,  
  
forgetting all about her sick houseguest.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Vegeta through open the door. He had been training for hours, and he  
  
was starving again.  
  
"WOMAN!" He called.  
  
"WOMAN, WHERE ARE YOU? I'M STARVING!" He was getting  
  
angry. Usually Bulma either came out to cook him something or  
  
yelled an insult, but neither had happened. "Hmm." Vegeta walked  
  
through the living room and down the hallway.  
  
"Woman!" He yelled down the hallway. He realized the door on his  
  
far left, the door to the guestroom was open just a crack. He took a  
  
few steps toward it, then stopped. What had Bulma said during  
  
dinner? Something about the guestroom, but his loud chewing had  
  
pretty much drowned it out.  
  
~During Dinner~  
  
"Vegeta, I put Celeste in the guestroom. She needs rest, so STAY  
  
OUT of there! Ok?"  
  
"Mmmph." He replied. He hadn't really heard her, but he wasn't  
  
about to admit it. He learned a while ago that ignoring his mate  
  
meant trouble. Especially if she found out.  
  
~Back to Vegeta~  
  
He open the door, only to see an empty bed. The sheets were ruffled  
  
and the pillow was at the foot of the bed. He grabbed a corner of the  
  
sheet and picked it up. Short black and brown hairs were all over the  
  
sheet. He picked one off and looked at it closely. It was one of  
  
Celeste's tail hairs. He flicked it back onto the sheet. ::Great,:: He  
  
thought. ::The female is loose. And the woman is no where to be  
  
found.::  
  
SMASH!  
  
Vegeta looked towards the doorway in time to see Celeste dash  
  
down the hallway towards the living room. She had a scared look on  
  
her face like someone was chasing her and was holding what looked  
  
like one of Trunks's action figures. He ran out the door and stopped  
  
in the hallway.  
  
"Come back here you foolish brat!" He yelled. Just as he was about  
  
to go after here, Trunks ran right into his legs, causing him to  
  
stumble. He reached back and grabbed Trunks by the back of his shirt.  
  
Trunks was nearly in tears.  
  
"What is it, pest?" He growled.  
  
"She. she.she took my. my.. my toy!" He bawled. Vegeta tilted  
  
his head back and sighed. He dropped Trunks back onto the floor,  
  
where he preceded to cry his eyes out. Vegeta turned around and  
  
walked into the living room. He stopped and looked around. He  
  
could sense the girl, but he couldn't see her.  
  
"Woman, where are you?" This was the last thing Vegeta knew how  
  
to deal with. Aliens, sure. Children, no way.  
  
"Child, get out where I can see you!" Whump! Vegeta suddenly felt a  
  
weight on his back and arms around his neck. He twisted his head  
  
around to come face to face with Celeste, who at first looked as  
  
surprised as him. Then her face twisted into a devious grin and she  
  
wrapped her legs around his waist. She must have been on the ceiling  
  
to surprise him like that. "Hi ho Silver, AWAAAAAY!" She shouted.  
  
She then whipped him in the leg with a hot wheels track. As Vegeta  
  
danced around, trying to pull the psycho teen off his back and wishing  
  
Bulma was there, he remembered that Trunks hadn't really specified  
  
which toy Celeste had taken.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Bulma walked in the front door, refreshed and renewed. Boy, she felt  
  
good. She turned around after closing the door to find Vegeta  
  
standing there, arms crossed, looking more pissed off then normal.  
  
His hair was sticking out at funny angles (more so then usual,  
  
anyways), and his eyes look slightly bloodshot. Also the left side of  
  
his upper pant leg seemed to be worn and a bit ripped.  
  
"What happened?!" Bulma asked, rather loudly. Vegeta never let his  
  
hair out of place and always wore fresh clothes. He pointed towards  
  
the living room. Bulma walked around the corner to see Celeste  
  
thrashing on the floor, arms, hands, feet and legs bound. A hot wheels  
  
track lay beside her and Trunk sat on the couch playing with an action  
  
figure. A lamp was knocked over and one of the chairs was upside  
  
down. She looked up to see handprints and scorch marks on the  
  
ceiling. The screen on the TV was scratched up a lot more than usual.  
  
Basically, the living room was trashed. Bulma's purse slid off her  
  
shoulder as she froze, lost in the question of how this could happen.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Sorry sorry sorry sorry sorry! Horrible horrible me for got to update!  
  
Well let's hope I'm back on schedule.  
  
Pfft, yeah right. But I will try.  
  
Really.  
  
- Siphyis 


	6. Wings Of Never

Chapter 6: Wings of Never  
  
Disclaimer: I (sadly) do not own Dragonball Z, or any of the following characters except Celeste  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* ~*~*~*  
  
Celeste twitched on the floor, asleep. Vegeta sat on the couch, watching grimly as the drool started to soak  
  
her gag.  
  
"Disgusting." He muttered. "Filthy child. You're probably not even saiyan." He stood up and walked over  
  
to her unmoving form. With a smirk, he stepped as hard as he could on her darkly-striped tail. He watched  
  
with pleasure as she immediately opened her eyes and straightened out, screaming in pain, although it could  
  
hardly be heard. Vegeta frowned. That certainly was a saiyan trait, but it wasn't enough. He needed to see  
  
her fight. See if she could fly.  
  
He kneeled down close by her face.  
  
"Listen, you pathetic half-breed." He growled. She opened her eyes, brimming with tears of pain. She  
  
scowled at him, squinting her pitch black eyes again, then started to yell some, *ahem* rather colorful words  
  
through the gag. She thrashed a bit then gave up. Her bonds were too tight. Vegeta smiled inwardly at her  
  
display.  
  
"I am going to let you sit here and rot a while longer while the woman is out for groceries. Then, after she  
  
returns, we will spar. I wish to see you in combat. Can you fly?" He questioned.  
  
"Mmph." Celeste appeared to be working on something behind her back, listening just enough to nod her  
  
head now and then. He got up in time to see the knife she had pulled from her back pocket slash the cords  
  
binding her wrists. She tried to jump up with a challenging 'Ah ha!' But she seemed to forget that her legs  
  
were still bound. She crashed back to the ground with a confused and surprised look on her face, but  
  
managed to catch herself with her hands. Vegeta laughed, then kicked her in the side, sending her flying into  
  
a wall.  
  
"Shall we spar now, then?"  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* ~*~*~*  
  
Bulma drove home, groceries in the capsules in the passengers seat. She sighed.  
  
"I wish I could just drive along the countryside, forget it all." She went over the day's events in her head.  
  
Vegeta had described Celeste's so-called 'attack'. She still giggled when she thought about it. But her  
  
thoughts still managed to wander over to Celeste herself. Where had the girl come from? Did she have any  
  
family? What were they to do with her? They couldn't abandon her, even though she seemed to know  
  
where she was.  
  
Then Bulma remembered. Celeste knew Goku. She had asked how far away he lived. And unless Vegeta or  
  
Trunks had mentioned him, Celeste shouldn't have even known his name. Bulma made a mental note to  
  
question the girl.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* ~*~*~*  
  
Jab. Punch. Dodge. Jab.  
  
Outside the house, in a small clearing in the forest, Vegeta and Celeste sparred. Vegeta promised not to use  
  
energy attacks since Celeste couldn't. But still, Vegeta was easily overcoming the child. She could fly, but  
  
only for a little while. Celeste had already been forced to the ground from lack of energy. She fast enough to  
  
continually block his attacks punch after punch, but when he did land the odd punch, she was easy to wear  
  
down. She gradually let more and more attacks past her defense, but managed to hold her ground. Still,  
  
Vegeta moved so fast himself she couldn't even get off one single punch. She knew she was going to lose.  
  
POW!  
  
That final punch made it's way past her depleted defense and found her stomach, throwing her into a tree. A  
  
large crack sounded through the forest, but whether it was the tree breaking from impact or Celeste's spine  
  
cracking from the force, Vegeta couldn't tell. Truth be told, he didn't care either. The girl needed to be  
  
taught a lesson. Rage still boiled in him when he thought about the degrading events that had occurred. The  
  
girl lay at the base of the tree, moaning and giving the occasional lurch of pain. He must have hit her harder  
  
than he thought. ::Ah well.:: Vegeta thought, smirking. ::Not. too much harm done.::  
  
"You are pathetic." He called across the clearing. "I am going back for dinner. When you are fit enough,  
  
follow the path back. I will not be coming back for you, nor will anyone else. Good night."  
  
And with that, he left, leaving the unconscious and mortally wounded Celeste to fend for herself.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* ~*~*~*  
  
Celeste groaned. ::Argh, what hit me?:: She wondered. She tried to stand up, but as soon as she tried, a  
  
searing pain that burned like fire race up her spine. How would she get back? She couldn't even walk. She  
  
fell to the ground, curled into a ball. The pain was so great, she thought she would pass out again.  
  
"Ergh.." She mumbled half-heartedly. She felt like she was going to die.  
  
Suddenly, a presence. Hovering above her , watching her, observing her. Celeste twitched.  
  
"Hurt, my slave? Get up."  
  
"I can't." She mumbled. She felt weird. Different. Like she owed this person something, like she needed to  
  
obey them.  
  
"You can. Get up, now." Energy coursed through her, focusing on her spine. She felt a pop in her back, and  
  
the energy, along with the fiery pain, subsided. She got onto all fours, then to a crouch, then weakly stood  
  
up. She kept her head down, looking at the ground.  
  
"Good. This is the only time I will help you, child. From now on, you are on your own. You must train, my  
  
slave. You have a mission to finish. I gave you this, now you must complete the payment, or I will crush you  
  
myself." It growled. The voice was deep, yet soothing.  
  
"I. don't know what you're talking. about." Celeste was still quite weak. She lifted her slightly.  
  
"You do. You are denying yourself the truth." It whispered. And just as fast as it appeared, it vanished.  
  
Celeste felt it leave. She lifted her head completely and looked around. She felt stronger now. She stood  
  
there, black eyes staring into the azure skies, thinking and watching the heavens fill with dark clouds and  
  
sounds of thunder. Then, as the rain poured down, soaking everything, Celeste began training, but why,  
  
she didn't know.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* ~*~*~*  
  
"Vegeta, where's Celeste?" Bulma questioned when she walked in. She threw the grocery capsules on the  
  
counter and took off her light wind jacket. Vegeta was watching TV, and Trunks was no where to be seen.  
  
::Must be in his room.:: Bulma noted.  
  
"I don't know, or care, for that matter." He snapped. He didn't even bother to lift his eyes from the screen.  
  
Bulma sighed.  
  
"Where is she, Vegeta?" She demanded. Vegeta only grunted.  
  
"Fine, no dinner for you tonight. You can cook yourself." Bulma threatened. This was a threat that actually  
  
worked on Vegeta, even if he didn't show it.  
  
"Fine woman, be that way." He scowled. "Trunks! Get out here!" Trunks wandered into the living room,  
  
carrying another action figure.  
  
"Yeah dad?" He asked.  
  
"Go get the girl. She's out where we train. That small clearing." Vegeta's statement was choppy, due to the  
  
fact that he still had his eyes on the TV, watching a commercial selling "the newest dishwasher on the  
  
market". Trunks nodded and headed out the door, and as soon as he was outside he took off flying.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* ~*~*~*  
  
Trunks landed just short of the clearing, deciding to walk the rest of the way to see if he could catch Celeste  
  
off guard. She seemed weak enough for he himself to take her. As he neared the clearing, He started hiding  
  
behind trees and sneaking around, trying not to make any noises. Trunks played what little part of the  
  
'Mission Impossible' theme he knew in his head. When he came to the edge, he stopped. Celeste was in the  
  
middle of training, and she was training hard. Trunks stood and watched from behind the tree, amazed. She  
  
was moving so fast, and her face was fixed into complete concentration. She punched and kicked wildly. A  
  
slight glow was forming slowly around her, and the faster she went, the brighter it glowed.  
  
Finally, when it looked like Celeste was about to collapse, the glowing aura flashed brightly then  
  
disappeared. She fell to all fours, right in the middle of the clearing. She crossed her arms and grasped both  
  
shoulders, breathing deeply. Trunks listened to her breathing speed up as she shook in what seemed to be  
  
pain. Suddenly, a pair of dark dragon wings ripped through the back of her shirt, stretching to the full  
  
wingspan. They were huge and black, covered in blood. The wings closed up against her back, staining her  
  
red shirt even darker red, then stretching out again. This happened a few times before Celeste stood up. She  
  
clenched her hands into fists.  
  
"This. this is what you give me?! I don't know what you want! This." She yelled. Then her voice  
  
dropped to a barely audible whisper. "This doesn't help." Trunks gasped. Celeste turned her head quickly.  
  
Trunks looked into those deep eyes. Hate, pain and terror swam through them. And yet, there was  
  
something else. And Trunks, even at his young age, recognized it for what it was. Fear.  
  
He continued to stare as Celeste turned and walked down the path that led back, he wings pressed against  
  
her back.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* ~*~*~*  
  
Vegeta was eating when Trunks walked in, and quickly joined him. Bulma didn't ask about Celeste, so he  
  
guessed she got back alright. But they hadn't mentioned her wings. The wings were pretty hard to miss, so  
  
Trunks couldn't help but wonder. But hey, there was food to eat, and being part saiyan, he was almost  
  
always hungry. Settling with 'I imagined it' as an explanation, he sat down to eat. But before his fork  
  
reached his mouth, Celeste walked into the kitchen herself, and sat down to eat.  
  
No wings.  
  
She didn't have wings anymore, which only furthered his simple explanation. So, that settled he tried to start  
  
eating again. But no, on his eye's way down to his plate, they met Celeste's. A threatening glare crossed her  
  
face. Had he imagined it all? Or was there something more to this girl? Trunks pretended to not have met her  
  
gaze and preceded to eat. Vegeta had noticed the exchange himself, took a short second to think about, then  
  
decided to ignore it.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* ~*~*~*  
  
Augh, long chapter. At least for me. Finally got Internet on my laptop, so no more converting stories to rich text format so my dinosaur computer that resides in my basement can read them. Goodies.  
  
I'd like to thank Saiyan Girl for motivating me with her excellent stories (I'm insanely jealous of her writing abilities). I deeply suggest reading her stories. And review them too. I can do it, so can you!  
  
Anyways, sorry for posting this two days earlier the I promised I would, and I promise to start updating regularly, even though the next chapter might not be up for a while, since I'm going away for the weekend. Boo-Yah ^_^. Don't forget to review! I looooooooove reviews, truly! 


	7. Animal Instincts

Chapter 7: Animal Instincts  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own Dragonball Z or any of the following characters except Celeste. She's mine.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* ~*~*~*  
  
Uh, first off I'd like to apologize for the horrible abrupt ending last chapter. I thought about taking it down and editing it, but I really didn't want to. I realize it left something to be desired (like another line or two, maybe a cliffhanger of some sort. ) but I've already got this one. Sorry.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* ~*~*~*  
  
Celeste climbed into her bed, not bothering to undress. She was just too tired, both mentally and physically.  
  
Training had taken so much out of her. And the transformation. That hadn't helped. So much was racing  
  
through her head. The shadowy figure, the wings.. It all felt like something from long ago. She knew what  
  
was happening, but it was like it had all been pushed to the very farthest corner of her brain, buried under 12  
  
feet of dirt and covered with stones. As far as she could tell, she had only removed a few of the top stones,  
  
not even uncovering the dirt. But she knew some things. Celeste knew there was something she had to do,  
  
even though she had a feeling like it was something that she never wanted to do, ever. She hated thinking  
  
about it, and she didn't really want to know at all. But she had to, Celeste knew it contained the key to  
  
leaving. She had imposed on Vegeta and Bulma long enough, and she had to get out of here. She felt  
  
trapped.  
  
"Augh, enough! Stop thinking!" Celeste yelled (as quietly as she could, so as not to wake anyone)  
  
at her brain. "I just want to sleep!" She thrashed about in her bed, angry and frustrated. Suddenly, she  
  
wasn't tired anymore. She needed to get up and walk around, use up some of her new found energy. She  
  
threw back the covers and sat on the edge of the bed. She put her heads in her hands, eyes closed. She got  
  
up and looked around the room. It was hard, the room was pitch black which impaired her vision greatly. She  
  
stood up and walked in what she thought to be the direction of the door, arms out in front of her. She found  
  
a flat vertical surface and felt around until she found a doorknob. She pulled, but it didn't budge, she tried  
  
again, but this time leaning to the side. The door slid to the side easily, which was weird, since Celeste  
  
remembered the door opening normally before she stepped out and preceded to run into a wall. When she  
  
felt around with her hands, she realized she had actually made her way into the closet. ::Stupid stupid  
  
stupid. :: She thought, and scowled at the darkness. She managed to get out of the closet and find the  
  
door. She crept out into the hall, being careful to not make any noise. Despite the pitch blackness, and a few  
  
walls that made their way into her face, she managed to get outside. The moonlight lit everything enough so  
  
that she could see.  
  
"What do I do now?" Celeste whispered to the darkness. She looked around, then noticed the path that led  
  
to the clearing.  
  
"Do I go train some more?" She mumbled. She started to raise off the ground, all the while staring at the  
  
moon. Celeste was in some sort of trance, and she knew it. But it felt good, so relaxing. She let her body take  
  
over and took off.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* ~*~*~*  
  
"Woman." Vegeta whispered. Celeste had gone outside, he had followed her out of the house, then gone  
  
back in. The girl was standing outside, staring off into space. He didn't know what she was going to do, but  
  
he was going to follow her to make sure she didn't get into trouble. He had gone back in to assure his mate  
  
that he would be back.  
  
"Woman." He whispered again, only this time more urgently. "Wake up!"  
  
"Errrrrgh." Bulma mumbled sleepily.  
  
"Woman!"  
  
"Wha iz it?" She said, half-awake.  
  
"I'm going out. I'll be back soon. Stay here."  
  
"Aw, you do care." She trailed off into sleep again. Vegeta sighed and crawled out the window, just in time  
  
to watch the girl fly off. He waited awhile, then took off after her. As they flew, her took the time to try once  
  
again to sense her thoughts.  
  
Nothing. Not even the turmoil remained. Her mind was blank. Confused, Vegeta flew up closer behind her.  
  
There was something else. Her power level had gone up greatly. She was still weaker than him and most of  
  
the others, though. But her power level had shot up so fast since he fought her.  
  
::Think about it later.:: He told himself. The girl was getting farther ahead and now was not the time to  
  
contemplate her power level.  
  
It was right then that he noticed a specific landmark pass by underneath him. In the forest below, there was a large clearing with a round stone exactly in the middle. He had flown over it many times on the way to..  
  
Kakarot's house?! Is that where she was heading? If it was, how did she know where it was located?  
  
Vegeta followed Celeste until she landed, which was exactly where he guessed. The Baka's house.  
  
She hit the ground just behind it, and circled around until she found a window. She gazed through it for a  
  
while, then moved to the next one. And the next. She seemed particularly taken with the third and final  
  
window, as she gazed into it for the longest while, and Vegeta decided to see what she was up to. He landed  
  
behind her with enough noise to alert her to his presence. She turned around sharply, and pressed up  
  
against the wall. Past her shoulder he saw who resided in that room.  
  
Gohan.  
  
He wasn't able to look any longer, because it was right then that Celeste moved in front of the window. Now  
  
her face was right in line with his. Her pitch eyes glared at Vegeta, as if. He felt a probing in the back of his  
  
head and realized that she was reading his mind! How did she gain that ability?! This girl was just full of  
  
surprises. He lashed out with his mind, pushing her away. Her eyes widened at this. Then, she got down low  
  
into a fighting stance and let out a cat-like hiss. Another weird surprise, but what came next was even  
  
weirder. The black spiral on her neck ((Author's note: This is a reference to chapter 1, if you don't  
  
remember)) shimmered and glowed as a pair of giant scaly wings popped out of her shoulder blades! Vegeta  
  
was caught off guard by this, and took a step back.  
  
"Listen, you freak. Whatever you are, I want you to leave. Now. You don't belong here." He snapped.  
  
Celeste looked at him, then tilted her head slightly, like a confused animal. She stood up straight and pulled  
  
the wings up against her back. Her arms fell down against her back, and the confused look disappeared. She  
  
gave a small smirk that greatly resembled Vegeta's, and then disappeared.  
  
Vegeta stared blankly for a while. She had just. vanished. Like nothing. All that was left was a  
  
light wind created by her quick exit. And that only lasted a few seconds. Vegeta regained his composure and  
  
approached Gohan's window. The boy was just lying there asleep, arms and legs spread out taking up as  
  
much space as possible. He wore nothing but boxers, and the slightest bit of drool crept out of his mouth.  
  
Vegeta sneered and took off, eager to get back to bed. It must have been around 3 am, and the woman would  
  
be worried. If she was still awake.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* ~*~*~*  
  
Bulma sat at the kitchen table in a housecoat, waiting for Vegeta. She had woken up shortly after he left, and  
  
couldn't get back to sleep. She felt exposed and unsafe without her saiyan prince, but she wasn't about to  
  
admit it any where near him. He'd never let her forget it. But right now, she was alone, except for Trunks, but  
  
he was asleep. Bulma was worried about Celeste, where could she have gone?  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* ~*~*~*  
  
Vegeta watched Celeste crawl through her window, wings still folded against her back. He stood outside,  
  
hidden in the darkness, fuming. How dare that girl! Such arrogance! His mind boiled in hate and  
  
embarrassment. He nearly trusted her. Nearly.  
  
Celeste jumped into her room. She looked around, as if checking for someone. Then, closed her  
  
eyes and balled her fists as her wings receded into her back. They folded up tighter and tighter until they  
  
dissolved back through the holes in her shirt. The black mark on her neck shimmered, then dulled. She fell to  
  
her knees, out of sight from Vegeta's viewpoint. He flew up a bit, enough to see her. She was breathing  
  
hard, her chest was moving rapidly. Her eyes were clenched shut, as if in pain. She stood up slowly and  
  
began to change for bed. Vegeta turned his head, giving her privacy. When he looked back she was already  
  
in bed and asleep. He growled softly, then walked around to the front door and let himself in. Bulma sat at  
  
the table in the kitchen, just finishing a cup of coffee. She stood up as soon as she saw him walk in.  
  
"Did you find her?" She asked. She was worried.  
  
Vegeta only nodded in response, as he stormed off to the Celeste's room, determined to find out what was  
  
going on.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* ~*~*~*  
  
Yeah, yeah, short chapter, I know. Sorry, I've got homework.  
  
Well, the story is developing, at least for me. It's not going exactly how I planned, but it's working. Well, I'm off on vacation with one o' my four best friends. Don't expect until chapter until at least Wednesday. No time to work on the eighth chapter until Monday, so yeah. Until then, ciao.  
  
- Siphyis 


	8. Coffee does Strange Things

Chapter 8: Coffee does Strange Things.  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own Dragonball Z or any of the following characters, except Celeste. She's mine.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* ~*~*~*  
  
Vegeta stormed into the room where Celeste slept. He flung the door open wildly, slamming it against the  
  
wall and nearly sending it off it's hinges. He growled, his face twisted in rage. How dare she return! Right  
  
now, Vegeta didn't care anymore and just wanted some answers.  
  
Celeste sat up quickly as soon as Vegeta entered. She was only partly asleep, anyway. Vegeta came up to  
  
her, face-to-face, and growled. He was extremely pissed. What had she done? Last thing she remembered.  
  
"I told you to get out. Leave my house, whatever you are, before I decide to kill you." He snapped. Celeste  
  
stood up and tried to look threatening, which was hard, on account of her sky blue pajama pants and  
  
superhero t-shirt that she borrowed from Trunks to wear to bed (kind of small, but it was comfortable  
  
enough).  
  
"I've done nothing wrong. What are you accusing me of?" Celeste was confused. Luckily, it was right then  
  
that Bulma walked in, robe and all.  
  
"Yes, Vegeta. What did she do?" Bulma asked. Vegeta turned to Bulma, angry.  
  
"This. this THING. is some sort of freak! She has wings! Big, freakish, ugly wings!" Vegeta yelled,  
  
pointing at Celeste. "She flew over to Kakarot's house!" Celeste lifted an eyebrow. How did Vegeta know  
  
she had wings? And he been the one watching from the edge of the clearing, not Trunks?  
  
She sighed in surrender. He knew, that was all that mattered.  
  
"Celeste?" Bulma moved closer and rested her hand on Celeste's shoulder, which Celeste quickly shook off.  
  
"It's true. the wings part, at least. I've never yet been to Goku's house." She said, turning away from  
  
them. Her tail fell from her waist and swayed back and forth slowly.  
  
"So you do know Goku's saiyan name." Vegeta growled.  
  
"Yes." Celeste snapped. "I do. I don't know how, but I do. I know all your names. Trunks, Goten, Gohan,  
  
Goku, Chi-Chi, all of them." She sat down on the edge of the bed.  
  
"You have wings?" Came a small voice. There was Trunks, in all his shortness standing in the doorway with  
  
a look of wonder on his face.  
  
"Go back to bed Trunks." Bulma whispered. Celeste smiled weakly.  
  
"It's alright Bulma. Yeah, I have wings Trunks." She said.  
  
"Good!" He sounded relieved. "I thought I dreamt it."  
  
"Dreamt it? Dreamt what?" Vegeta asked. "Screw it! I'm tired. We all are. I need sleep! Trunks, go back to  
  
bed. Bulma and I are going back to bed too. You are not to leave his house."  
  
"First get out, now don't leave." Celeste mumbled.  
  
"What?" Vegeta sneered.  
  
"Nothing. Goodnight." She flopped onto her side and pulled the blankets over her shoulders. Vegeta  
  
stopped to flick off the lights before leaving, giving one quick look back over his shoulder at the still form  
  
lying on the bed, then turning towards the comforting darkness and a night's rest.  
  
~*~  
  
Bulma woke to the rather cliché sound of birds chirping.  
  
She sat up and stretched, then looked over at Vegeta, lying there with the covers pulled up under his chin. It  
  
was chilly this morning. She grabbed some clothes out of the closet, a blue t-shirt with the Capsule Corp.  
  
logo on the shoulder and some dark blue jeans that hung just below her knees, and went into the bathroom  
  
to take a shower, just as Vegeta awoke, sort of anyway. If you call rolling off the bed 'waking up'.  
  
Vegeta stood up, still groggy. He grabbed a rather ugly green shirt from the drawer and some loose-fitting  
  
pants, pulled them on slowly. He stood up, intent on making his way to the bathroom for a shower, only to  
  
realize Bulma was in there already, humming a fast-paced tune.  
  
"Woman, get out of there. I need a shower." He ordered. Bulma switched from humming to singing.  
  
"Staring at the sun, oh oh oh oh." (*Author's Note: Staring at the Sun, by Offspring. It's copyright to,  
  
well, Offspring. Duh.)  
  
"Woman! Get out!" He slammed his fist against the door, being careful not to break it.  
  
"Go use the other bathroom, Veggie, I got here first. Don't be so lazy!" Bulma called, then went back to  
  
humming. Vegeta stormed off down the hall angrily. The other bathroom wasn't as big or clean, because it  
  
wasn't used as much.  
  
Vegeta passed the closed door leading to Celeste's room, noticing it was slightly ajar. He didn't bother to  
  
think about it before opening it completely and looking in. Celeste's bed was empty and the window was  
  
open, with the slightest breeze ruffling the curtains.  
  
"She's gone!" Vegeta yelled, turning out of the room and running down the hallway. He made his way into  
  
the kitchen, and was about to run out the door to find Celeste, when he stopped. A smell wafted under his  
  
nose. Pancakes and orange juice! But Bulma was the only one who knew how to cook in the household, and  
  
she was in the shower. ::Hmmm.:: Vegeta thought. He walked back into the kitchen to find Trunks sitting at  
  
the table eating.  
  
"Who made that for you?" Vegeta questioned.  
  
"That weird wing-girl." Trunks said with a swallow.  
  
"Where is she now?"  
  
"Dunno. I think she went to the bathroom for a shower." Trunks shrugged and continued eating as Vegeta  
  
raced down the hall.  
  
Vegeta screeched around the corner and ran into his bedroom. Bulma had just finished dressing and was  
  
pulling on her socks.  
  
"Where's Celeste?!" Vegeta panicked. Bulma raised an eyebrow.  
  
"She just got in the shower. Why?"  
  
"I was supposed to shower next!" Vegeta said.  
  
"I thought you were going to use the other one."  
  
"It's not as good as this one."  
  
"Don't be such a cry baby, Veggie-chan. She'll be out soon."  
  
Vegeta slumped to the floor. What a morning.  
  
~*~  
  
Celeste walked out of the bathroom, dressed and hair blow-dried. She has spent about 45 minutes or so in  
  
there overall, but the way the vein stood out on Vegeta's forehead suggested she had been in there for 3  
  
hours.  
  
"Geez Veggie, hope you don't pop a nerve or something. Was only like half an hour." Celeste commented as  
  
she finished brushing her hair.  
  
"Don't call me that, half-breed." Vegeta still sat on the floor. Bulma had left to make the Prince's breakfast.  
  
"Don't call me half-breed." Celeste stuck out her tongue. She turned to face the mirror hanging on the wall,  
  
humming a slow, melodious tune Vegeta had never heard before. Then Vegeta noticed the wings folded up  
  
against Celeste's back.  
  
"What the hell?" Vegeta stood up. Celeste look back at him over her shoulder, noticing what he was staring  
  
at.  
  
"It was uncomfortable with them hidden, and I figured since everyone knows about them anyway." She  
  
trailed off, then walked out the door, stretching out her wings in obvious mockery of Vegeta, which he duly  
  
noted. He then walked into the bathroom and had a cold shower, since Bulma and Celeste had used up all  
  
the hot water, which pissed him off even further.  
  
~*~  
  
Bulma and Celeste conversed while Vegeta inhaled his breakfast. He listened to them without commenting,  
  
even when they discussed his "over-inflated ego". While some of their topics bothered him, he was glad  
  
Bulma had another woman to talk to. She looked like enjoyed it too. Vegeta was starting to forget to listen so  
  
he could focus on his quickly emptying plate. Bulma got up to get some coffee.  
  
"Celeste, you want some?" Bulma asked.  
  
"Uh, I've never drank the stuff before, but sure. First time for everything, I suppose." She took the hot cup  
  
from Bulma's hands and sipped it.  
  
"S'alright, I guess." Celeste commented, and took another sip. She brushed a strand of hair out of her face  
  
and continued her conversation with Bulma.  
  
Vegeta continued to eat, but felt something wrong.  
  
He looked up.  
  
Each sip Celeste took from the cup of coffee raised her power level a bit. Not much, just a tiny bit. ::Coffee  
  
must give her an energy boost.:: Vegeta concluded (He had never had any before, so he hadn't actually  
  
experienced the 'boost' it gives you).  
  
Bulma stood up again.  
  
"I have to go get Trunks ready for school, he's going to be late again!" Bulma said frantically, looking at her  
  
watch. Celeste stood up.  
  
"Ohmygodreally?IbetterhelpImeanyoudon'twanthimtobelateandIshouldstarthelping outmoresinceI'vebeenst  
  
ayingheresolong." Celeste spoke extremely rapidly. Her wings twitched continually. She raced into the living  
  
room where Trunks sat watching cartoons and playing video games. Celeste told him (quickly) to get ready  
  
for school. Trunks sweat dropped, then looked at the clock.  
  
"I'm gonna be late!" He yelled. "Mom! Get the car ready!" He raced into his room to get ready. Celeste flew  
  
out the door, pausing only to grab the keys for the car off the counter. She raced outside and started the car,  
  
revving the engine and playing with the steering wheel while she waited. Soon Trunks came out the door  
  
and jumped into the back of the car. Bulma followed and Celeste jumped out of the driver's seat.  
  
"You coming?" Bulma asked.  
  
"I'll fly!" Celeste grinned. She stretched out her wings and jumped up, quickly rising high above the trees.  
  
She followed Bulma's car through the streets. She occasionally landed to wind surf on the roof of the car,  
  
although her sneakers didn't provide the best grip. At one point she did fall off, but managed to catch  
  
herself and fly back up before hitting the car behind her. The only part that really bored her was when Bulma  
  
got caught in traffic. Celeste succeeded in making it worse by perching on the streetlamp and caused people  
  
to stop and stare. When she realized that, she took off out of sight until the traffic started, when continued  
  
following the car all the way to Trunk's school. Then she followed Bulma to work, and spent the rest of the  
  
day exploring. Vegeta, of course, spent the whole day training. At one point, Goku even came over to train  
  
with Vegeta, but he never saw Celeste, who was wandering the mall at that time.  
  
It seemed last night's events had been forgotten.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* ~*~*~*  
  
Augh, my eye's hurt. Hope you enjoyed this, 'twas typed up at the last minute.  
  
Hate to do this, but lack of motivation commands me:  
  
Please Review! I'm Begging!  
  
*falls asleep* 


	9. Trunks Arrives!

Chapter 9: Trunks Arrives!  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own Dragonball Z or any of the following characters, except Celeste. She is © me.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* ~*~*~*  
  
Celeste pulled a pair of jeans off the rack at Wal-Mart (AN: Copyrights and all that. I don't own Wal-  
  
Mart.) and held them up. The front of them we're shaded white with little pink and purple butterflies stitched  
  
to the sides of the legs.  
  
"Ugh, too pink." Celeste hung them back up. She wandered into the Electronics section and browsed  
  
through the CDs. She picked a few up and looked them over before putting them back. Hey, she had no  
  
money, so all she could do was browse.  
  
Celeste was getting bored. It was way to hot in here and the music they had on the intercom was old. She  
  
sighed and walked out of the building, emerging into the noise and brisk winds of the city. She took off her  
  
jacket and let her wings stretch.  
  
"Much better." She told the breeze. Her wings extended to catch the wind and she took off, much to the  
  
wonder of an employee gather up shopping carts.  
  
~*~  
  
Celeste landed on the roof of the Brief's house. Bulma was still out and Trunk's still at school. And since  
  
Vegeta had no where to go, so he was probably training. Celeste jumped down and walked over to the  
  
Gravity Chamber. She peeked into one of the windows.  
  
Nope, no Vegeta. Where could he be? Celeste thought for a moment. She felt a small prick in the back of her  
  
mind, directing her towards the clearing where she first grew wings. Something told her that's where Vegeta  
  
is.  
  
"Ooo, it's like I can sense him." Celeste whispered. She was still hyped up from the coffee and was in the  
  
mood for some games. "Let's see if I can find Veggie."  
  
~*~  
  
Vegeta was training in the clearing. Goku had left a few minutes ago, and Vegeta was glad to be alone again.  
  
Gave him time to think, and the quiet was extremely calming. He stopped in the middle of the clearing. A  
  
noise from the left side, in the bushes.  
  
"Who's there?" He called. Of course, no one answered. Vegeta stood still, not moving or making any  
  
sounds. He watched calmly as the noise came again, and a simple rabbit dashed across the clearing, quickly  
  
followed by a fox, who paused to stare at Vegeta before continuing after it's terrified prey.  
  
"Endless cycle of life and death." Vegeta mumbled. ::Oh great,:: He thought. ::I'm getting philosophical.::  
  
Pause.  
  
Another sound. Like the that of a strong wind. Vegeta watched as the Time Machine landed not 3 yards  
  
from him. Trunks hopped down as soon as the top opened and quickly put the Machine back in it's capsule.  
  
"Father, good. I thought I'd have to go find you. Where's Mom?" Trunks sounded worried.  
  
"Your Mother has gone out." Vegeta said.  
  
"Figures." Trunks sighed. "But anyway, I've got something to tell you father."  
  
~*~  
  
Celeste listened to them talk. 'Them' being Trunks and Vegeta. And she couldn't really hear them either.  
  
Basically she sat there, crouched in the bushes, ears straining to hear their conversation, trying her best to  
  
not make a noise for fear of being discovered.  
  
She stopped thinking for a minute when she noticed that Vegeta had made a slight gesture towards her  
  
position. Trunks's head turned and he strode over to her. He couldn't see her, that was obvious by the way  
  
he turned his head back and forth.  
  
"Sense her, child. It's not that hard!" Vegeta called.  
  
"Alright, Father." Trunks yelled back. He came closer towards Celeste, still oblivious to her actual position.  
  
::Eep!:: She thought and pulled in her wings and attempted to make herself as small as possible. She  
  
flattened out on the ground. Suddenly Trunks's hand shot through the bushes and grabbed hers. He pulled  
  
her up out of her little spot and held her in front of his face. She smiled guiltily. He yelled and dropped her  
  
again, causing her to land sharply on her butt.  
  
"SHE'S GOT NO EYES!" He yelled. Vegeta sighed and walked over, pulling Celeste out of the bushes again.  
  
"She has eyes, boy. They're just. different." Trunks looked closer and saw that her eyes were just black,  
  
and through the pitch he could sense only turmoil. He brought his face up closer in fascination, but pulled  
  
back when she stuck her tongue out at him. He gave another gasp when wings sprouted from her back and  
  
she wrenched her arm from Vegeta's grasp and took to a tree.  
  
"Nyah!" She called from the hidden depths of the leaves. Vegeta growled.  
  
"She's still got some coffee in her system from her first cup this morning." He explained. "Child! Get down  
  
here now!"  
  
Trunks looked confused. "But. it's 2 pm.." Celeste suddenly appeared, but she was upside down. Her  
  
wings clasped to her back as she clung to a thick branch, her anchor. Trunks started to approach her, but  
  
she stretched her wings out and hissed. Then she giggled and shot back up into the tree.  
  
"I give up." Trunk surrendered.  
  
"I don't." Vegeta smiled and shot a small ki blast into the tree, knocking Celeste from her perch and burning  
  
off half the tree in the process. Celeste lay there, growling, before flipping over and aiming a kick at Vegeta's  
  
chest, in an attempt to attack. Vegeta dodged easily, grabbing her foot and fling her back against the burned  
  
carcass of the tree. She gracefully pushed off the stump, breaking it in half in the process, and shot back at  
  
Vegeta. He caught he with his foot in her ribs, sending her to the ground.  
  
"We've got no time to play, child." Vegeta scorned. "We must go back to the house."  
  
Celeste only growled, clutching her ribs.  
  
"Poor sport." Vegeta mumbled before heading back in the direction of the Brief's home, with Trunks right  
  
behind and Celeste following a little afterward, still holding her side.  
  
~*~  
  
Vegeta had gotten Trunks to call Goku over. Gohan was in school, so he couldn't come. The big news that  
  
everyone had been called for? A new villain, of course. Only this time, this one was in Future Trunks  
  
timeline and he was screwing with time and dimensions. He had some sort of device that skipped through  
  
time and parallel dimensions in the blink of an eye, according to Trunks. He had been using it lately to bring  
  
back and modify creatures from other dimensions in an attempt to, what else? Rule the world. Man, life had  
  
been cliché lately.  
  
Celeste, for some reason or another, was hiding somewhere in the house. As soon as Trunks had finished  
  
calling Goku, she had dashed off and now hid in some unknown reaches of the rather large house, so Vegeta  
  
made no attempt to find her. Trunks wanted to, but he couldn't locate her, even when scanning for her  
  
power. Maybe she wasn't even in the house anymore.  
  
~*~  
  
And she wasn't. She sat on the roof, hidden behind a large raised section, waiting silently for Goku.  
  
Kakarot. Whatever.  
  
~*~  
  
Goku knocked on the door. Trunks was quick to answer it.  
  
"Hey Goku." He welcomed.  
  
"Hi Trunks! Where's Vegeta?" Goku answered.  
  
"He's in the living room, waiting."  
  
"Oh, ok. Do you think he'll mind if I grab a bite to eat out of the fridge?" And without waiting for approval,  
  
he merely began raiding the refrigerator anyway.  
  
"Kakarot, get your ugly face out of my fridge!" Vegeta yelled. He walked into the kitchen and sat down.  
  
Goku sat down himself after pulling some food from the fridge and munched on it as Vegeta explained what  
  
was going on. Goku got tired of listening, so his mind started wandering.  
  
::I wonder if there's any more food in the fridge. This is boring. What's he going on about? I'm hungry. I  
  
shouldn't have trained so long; I missed lunch. Is he still talking? Hmmm, I can sense someone on the roof.  
  
I'm reeeaaalllly hungry.::  
  
"Kakarot? Are you listening?" Vegeta snapped.  
  
"Goku?" Trunks asked. Goku had a glazed look to his eyes, which went away as he regained his thoughts  
  
again.  
  
"Uh.. Yeah! Yeah." Goku said. "Uh, did you guys know there's someone on the roof?"  
  
"Some that's where she went.." Trunks mumbled to himself, but as quiet as he tried to keep, Vegeta still  
  
heard him.  
  
"Keep silent boy!" He hissed.  
  
"But shouldn't we tell him about." Trunks stopped when he saw the look Vegeta gave him. ::Why's he so  
  
concerned about her?:: Trunks thought.  
  
Goku looked up.  
  
"Huh? What're you guys talking about?" He looked up from the new plate of food he had gotten. Both  
  
Trunks and Vegeta sweatdropped.  
  
"Nothing, Kakarot, you moron. Go back to stuffing yourself." Vegeta snapped. Goku shrugged and  
  
continued eating.  
  
"So. what are we going to do about the bad guy?" Trunks asked, half- heartedly. This was confusing and  
  
exhausting. Why was Celeste hiding? Why did Vegeta care so much about keeping her secret? Why. does  
  
Goku eat so much?  
  
"Wha bah geh?" Goku said, mouth crammed with food. Trunks sighed. This was very tiring.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* ~*~*~*  
  
Not as long as I would have liked, but it's alright, I suppose. Must get working on a school project again, *sigh*. Ah well, do review, please. I would like it very, very much, since I don't plan to update another chapter until I get, lets see, 5 more reviews, maybe? Sorry to do this, but I'm really lacking in motivation. Oh, just so you know, Goku's saying 'What bad guy?', although I hope that was obvious. And if you need something to do while you wait for the next chapter, listen to 'Mad World' by Gary Jules or watch 'Donnie Darko'. Gotta be my favorite (right after Nightmare before Christmas) movie ever. If you took the time to read all of this little note, thanks. Oh, and don't forget, please review! 


	10. Gargoyle Girl

Chapter 10: Gargoyle Girl  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own DBZ or any of the following characters, except for Celeste. She's © me.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* ~*~*~  
  
Celeste giggled. She was still hyper and was playing mind games with herself, playing out little scenarios  
  
in her head, like what she would do if Goku or Vegeta came out to find her.  
  
"Ooo, I'd hide then jump out an' surprise 'em!" She plotted, semi-evilly. Snickering, she crouched down  
  
low against the roof. Suddenly, Celeste felt that familiar prick in the back of her head.. She stopped  
  
making noise and held her breath. It was coming from. her left. She slinked down even further and  
  
turned, only to come face-to-face with a small ridge in the roof, blocking her view. Peeking over it, she  
  
watched as some jumped up onto the roof. They landed on bended knee, then stood up and turned around.  
  
Trunks.  
  
Well, this changed things. She had betted on Vegeta coming up, or him sending up Goku, not Trunks.  
  
What was she supposed to do now? She bit her tongue in thought, then smiled as a plan formed itself it  
  
her head.  
  
~*~  
  
"Why couldn't Father have sent Goku? What's his problem?" Trunks growled. "Why doesn't he want  
  
Goku to see Celeste?" He sighed. Vegeta had told him to 'fetch the girl' and to 'lock her in a room  
  
somewhere'. He really didn't want to lock Celeste up anywhere, just talk to her.  
  
He paused his thoughts when he caught a glimpse of a brown out of the corner of his eye. He turned  
  
silently, and was able to catch Celeste in the process of slipping down over the edge of the roof. He walked  
  
over and looked down. She was just slipping into an open window. He waited for about three seconds after  
  
she got in, then followed. What did she have in mind?  
  
He found her, crouched against the floor, peeking around a corner. She was snickering evilly. Slowly, she  
  
stood up, now silent. He laughed in his head. What did she think she was, a spy? Trunks decided to mess  
  
with her. He crept up closer, watching her stand there as if waiting. Slowly, she set one foot in front of  
  
her, then the other. She was perfectly silent, as was he, even when he was about an inch from her, nearly  
  
breathing down her neck. He reached out, and in one swift motion, grabbed her around her waist and  
  
pinned her arms to her side. Her wings went out in defense, but they could not escape the tight hold he  
  
had on her. Celeste made a hissing noise and bit down on his arm.  
  
"Holy crap!" Trunks yelled. Boy, her teeth were sharp! He slid one arm further around her and let the  
  
other one free to inspect it.  
  
Blood! She had drawn blood!  
  
"Frick!" He said. Suddenly, he felt a rather wet something on his arm. Looking over, he saw Celeste  
  
dragging her tongue across his exposed arm. He let go completely, cursing, wiping the saliva off his arm  
  
and trying to stop the blood flowing from his cut. Celeste dashed out of sight, trying to escape.  
  
"You can run, but you can't hide!" Trunks yelled after her. He sighed.  
  
"Kami, that sounded so dumb."  
  
~*~  
  
Goku had gone home so he and Gohan could train as soon as Gohan got back from school. Vegeta sat  
  
there at the table, waiting.  
  
Suddenly a curse came from the floor above, followed by footsteps and  
  
'You can run, but you can't hide!'. What was Trunks doing up there? He was supposed to bring Celeste  
  
back down, not be playing some twisted version of Hide-and-Seek. He better not have to go up there, or  
  
else *someone* would be in definite pain.  
  
~*~  
  
Celeste ducked into a linen closet, pulling in her wings. She grinned maliciously as she listened to Trunks  
  
run past. Man, this was fun.  
  
~*~  
  
"Get out here!" Trunks yelled. Celeste was really pissing him off! Where was she?  
  
He heard a giggle. Slightly muffled, but an obvious giggle. He turned back down the hallway,  
  
ignoring the slightly ajar closet door, suspicious as it was. ::Duh!:: Celeste thought as she reached out and  
  
grabbed his ankle, pulling it towards her and causing him to fall. Trunks got back up and reached into the  
  
linen closet, pulling the hyperactive girl out by her arm. She squirmed, but only succeeded in making him  
  
tighten his grip.  
  
"Now, are you gonna behave?" He asked. Celeste flopped over onto the ground, going limp in his hand  
  
and overall ignoring him. Trunks sighed in exasperation, and dragged Celeste down the hallway, down a  
  
flight of stairs and into the kitchen where Vegeta sat, waiting. Amazingly, Celeste had managed to stay  
  
limp the whole way. Vegeta looked up from a cup of coffee he had poured himself as they entered, and  
  
Trunks dropped Celeste face-up on the tiled floor and sat down at the table, after pouring himself some  
  
coffee also.  
  
"I told you to lock her in her room, not drag her down here." Vegeta said half-heartedly, not really caring.  
  
Trunks just grumbled, sipping his coffee.  
  
~*~  
  
Celeste lay on the floor, plotting her escape, when a familiar scent wafted past her nose.  
  
Coffee!  
  
She crawled under the table straight to the other side then reached up and felt around. She was not far  
  
from Vegeta's legs, so she tried to be careful. Her hand soon brushed a warm cup, and she quickly  
  
grabbed it and brought it close to her nose, letting the smell tickle her nostrils. She put the rim to her lips  
  
and quickly emptied the cup.  
  
Already feeling the caffeine in her blood, Celeste moved down the length of the table towards the chair  
  
where Trunks sat. She repeated the previous act, and emptied Trunk's cup too.  
  
Suddenly, she felt something twist inside of her. ::Uh-oh,:: Celeste thought. ::Something's wrong!:: She  
  
wrapped her arms around her stomach and bent over in pain. Her vision blurred, then focused, then  
  
blurred again. She felt her wings emerge from her back and wrapped her tail tightly around her waist for  
  
support, but she ended up making the pain worse.  
  
A sharp pain went through her joints, back and waist, then everything went black.  
  
~*~  
  
"Where'd my coffee go?" Trunks said looking around. Vegeta shrugged in an 'I don't care' type of way,  
  
then reached for his cup, but grabbed nothing. Vegeta was just about to say something, when the table  
  
gave a sudden lurch into the air, the fell back to the ground. Vegeta and Trunks stared at each other, then  
  
looked under the table.  
  
There lay Celeste, unconscious. Two cups, empty, were rolling on the ground beside her. But there was  
  
something else. Trunks was first to notice the large spikes sticking out of her elbows, knees, ankles and  
  
wrists, along with a row of them starting at the base of her neck and ending at the end of her tail, which  
  
had fallen from her waist, leaving gashes around her waist that were bleeding heavily. Spikes had also  
  
sprouted from the tips of her wings, which had grown slightly. Fangs that extruded from her top jaw  
  
pressed lightly against her lips that were the color of fresh blood, not unlike that which now pooled  
  
around her. But her skin had helped enhance the redness, as it was so pale it reminded Trunks of fresh  
  
snow. Celeste now greatly resembled the vampires from the stories told to children, except that the wings  
  
and tail now gave the impression of a demon or succubus. But as the thoughts ran through Trunks head,  
  
he realized the she had to be helped; she had already lost too much blood.  
  
~*~  
  
Vegeta had bandaged Celeste's waist and laid her on her bed. She tossed a bit in her sleep, and now the  
  
mattress and sheets were torn and slightly bloodstained. It was now 4 pm, so Bulma would be home soon,  
  
if she wasn't delayed. Young Trunks had come home earlier, but had soon gone over to the Son house to  
  
play with Goten.  
  
Celeste rolled from her side to her back, tearing the mattress again. Vegeta sighed. Who was this child?  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* ~*~*~  
  
Eurgh, no afternotes this time. Must study for tests.  
  
- Siphyis Pendragon 


	11. Dreams and Directions

Chapter 11: Dreams and Directions  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own Dragonball Z or any of the following characters, except Celeste. She's © me.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* ~*~*~  
  
Bulma walked in around 11 pm. She had stayed at work late to catch up on some things she had forgotten,  
  
and had only finished a few minutes ago. She quickly made her way to the bedroom, passing Celeste's  
  
room on the way. A groan escaped the room, intriguing Bulma to look in, which she regretted quickly.  
  
Celeste appeared to have had bandages on, at one point in time, anyway. Most of them had come off,  
  
revealing what looked like slashes in her shirt and still bleeding cuts around her waist. The bed itself was  
  
torn and bloodstained. Bulma couldn't right away see what had shredded the mattress, until she noticed  
  
the large spikes sticking out of Celeste's elbows, knees, ankles and what seemed like every other joint on  
  
her body. Bulma gasped quickly, then turned to leave the room, figuring that at least Celeste had her  
  
wings retracted or the damage could have been worse.  
  
Bulma walked down the hallway to her and Vegeta's room, where Vegeta had apparently decided  
  
subconsciously that he wanted the whole bed that night, as he had sprawled himself across the mattress.  
  
Bulma made short work of that decision, forcing Vegeta onto his side and taking her place, and fell asleep  
  
quickly.  
  
~*~  
  
Trunks woke in darkness. The clock beside his bed read 3:17 am. Something tugged at his mind;  
  
something had drawn him awake. He sat up and ran his hand through his hair, swinging his legs over the  
  
edge of the bed and leaning on his knee with one hand. He sat for a minute in his odd smiley face boxer  
  
shorts, playing with the tugging feeling, wondering what it was, then laid back down. He looked over at  
  
the door, then rolled onto his side so his back was to it. The tugging feeling got stronger, but he ignored it.  
  
He felt a hand settle lightly on his shoulder, so he closed his eyes pretending to be asleep. The hand shook  
  
him gently, and it would have woke him, had he actually been asleep. He rolled over, not caring if  
  
whoever it was guessed he had been faking.  
  
"What? Who.?" He asked, then stopped mid-sentence.  
  
Celeste loomed over him, wrapped head-to-toe in a torn and bloodstained sheet. Her eyes were, although  
  
hidden slightly, obviously scared, yet they seemed tired at the same time. The wind from his slightly ajar  
  
window\caught the torn sheet and pressed it against her, outlining her wings and the spikes on her elbows  
  
and wrists.  
  
"Oh." Trunks said. The tugging feeling increased drastically, then flashed and disappeared. "What is it?"  
  
"I had a nightmare." She whispered. She sounded like a 5 year old who had seen the shadows moving in  
  
her closet and taken then for monsters. "Can I sleep with you?" The question had no sexual tone  
  
whatsoever, and again reminded Trunks of a child. Memories went back to a time when Young Trunks  
  
had come in asking the same question. Trunks had let him, of course. It had been to late at night to refuse  
  
and force the kid to walk back to his room in the darkness and shadows.  
  
"Can you pull in your wings? And the spikes too, if possible." Trunks responded. Almost immediately, the  
  
sheet sagged around Celeste's now humanoid form, apart from the tail which could be seen through the  
  
tears in the sheets wrapped around her waist. She still had the sheet pulled tightly around her for warmth  
  
as if that would stop the breeze that blew through the window from entering the sheet through the holes.  
  
"Alright. Drop the sheet first." Trunks moved over as Celeste climbed in. She wore the shirt she had worn  
  
all day, which was ripped and bloodied also, and no pants. She huddled close to Trunks, pressing her back  
  
against his chest, and curled up into a ball. Trunks felt the strong fear emanating from her and felt a pang  
  
of sympathy for her. Not knowing who she was and having to live with people that she only knew the  
  
names of. Gently, he wrapped his arms around her. She let him, and relaxed in his arms. Trunks listened  
  
to her breathing shallow out as she fell asleep, then let himself drift off too, not bothering to remove his  
  
arms, even though one of them had gone numb.  
  
~*~  
  
..::The sunlight drifted in through the trees of the forest. Trunks looked around, not knowing where he  
  
was. A path was visible, but it only went forward.  
  
Was this the start, or the end?  
  
Trunks started forward down the seemingly endless trail. He walked on and on, never slowing, never  
  
stopping. The sun above sank ever quickly, replaced with the shining disk of the night, the moon. He  
  
seemed to be able to see and count every star in that sky, but he didn't. He didn't know why, but he had  
  
to keep going. Something was waiting for him at the end, or maybe the beginning of the path. He had to  
  
get there fast, but It would wait for him; It couldn't start without him.  
  
Trunks reached another clearing, bigger than the one at the other end. He could see where the trail  
  
continued on the opposite side. Trunks looked behind himself, then crossed the clearing and continued  
  
along the trail. It wasn't far now, Trunks could feel It coaxing him onward. It wanted to start, to finish. It  
  
needed to tell him something, and he felt the familiar pulling sensation.  
  
Trunks started to run.::..  
  
~*~  
  
Vegeta woke to whispers in the darkness of the early morn. He sat up on one arm and listened as hard as  
  
one could at 3 am (roughly, anyway). Down the hall, Trunks's room maybe? The whispers stopped.  
  
Vegeta laid back down and went back to sleep.  
  
~*~  
  
..::Hurry! It hurts so badly, but you must know! Hurry, Trunks.::..  
  
~*~  
  
.hurry.  
  
Vegeta woke again, a mere 2half hour since the first time he woke up. ::What the hell?:: Vegeta thought,  
  
rubbing his eyes. He listened for the sound that had caused his waking, but nothing came. He sat on the  
  
edge of the bed, thinking, when Bulma rolled over and woke up.  
  
"What is it Veggie? Go back to sleep." She said.  
  
"I can't sleep. I'm going for a walk." He responded, getting up and putting on his pants. Bulma rolled  
  
back, not saying anything else. Vegeta walked over to the sliding door that went out to a balcony. As he  
  
shut the door behind him, he whispered, "Don't wait up." to her unmoving form.  
  
~*~  
  
..::Trunks's shirt stuck to his back from sweat, but he didn't care, he ran and ran, forgetting he could fly,  
  
totally absorbed in reaching It. He was close, just a little farther.  
  
He burst into another clearing. There was a bright flash and Trunks froze. He couldn't move. He could see  
  
and hear, but not move.  
  
Frozen mid-stride, he waited. What would It show him?  
  
+|The little girl, not yet 11, sat in the clearing, crying her eyes out. The sound was heart-wrenching. It was  
  
like she couldn't stop. The tears kept coming and coming and coming. A twig snapped behind her. She  
  
turned around, coming face to face with a dark cloaked figure. It circled her, it's face never visible, and  
  
although Trunks could tell it would not harm her, it meant no good for her either. Trunks fought against  
  
the immobile ness, wanting the fight off the figure, or at least call out to the girl. But he couldn't, and  
  
that made it all that much worse.  
  
The figure spoke to her, in quiet swishing whispers, in words only she could hear. She look straight at the  
  
figure, and her eyes, oh her eyes! Those of a child forgotten, looking for her place in the world, looking  
  
for a friend, looking for anything that would end her loneliness. And here it was. Offered to her on a  
  
silver platter. The joy was so obvious in those deep sea-blue eyes, the joy so falsely created. The figure was  
  
deceiving her, but she didn't know that. Trunks wanted to kill the dark figure, to release the child from  
  
his lies, anything to help her, anything to prevent what he knew was the inevitable.  
  
The little girl wiped the tears from her eyes, standing up. She was taller than she had first looked. She  
  
nodded, sealing her fate, granting the figure her trust. The figure laughed. An arm shot out of the cloak  
  
and grabbed her, then threw her by the arm into the shadows from whence it had came. It followed soon  
  
after, still laughing quietly to itself in mockery and triumph.|+ ::..  
  
~*~  
  
Trunks sat up quickly, gasping for breath, sweating pouring out of what seemed like every pore of his  
  
body. He remembered. a dream. A child. A shadow. Then it faded into the dark night that enveloped  
  
everything. The clock on his bed side table read 4:03 am. It hadn't been that long since he last woke to  
  
Celeste entering his room.  
  
Celeste! Where was she?! Trunks looked around. Celeste was not in then bed anymore. The torn and  
  
bloody sheet still lay on the floor, but Celeste was nowhere. Trunks got out of bed and crossed over to the  
  
door. He peeked out and looked up and down to each end of the hallway. The main bedroom's door was  
  
ajar and Bulma's deep breathing could be heard, but Trunks couldn't sense Celeste in there. Nor did she  
  
seem to be anywhere else in the house. Had she gone out on another "midnight romp"?  
  
::Kami, I hope not!:: Trunks thought, going back into his room to throw on some jeans and a T-shirt  
  
before running out to search for Celeste.  
  
((AN: Can't have him running around in his boxers, now can we? ~_^ ))  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* ~*~*~  
  
Whee. I'm up at three am writing the eleventh chapter to my story for you ungrateful little. Ack no! Wait! That's the stomach flu talking! Yeah, I'm sick, so I figured I'd update. Why not? I'm not tired so this is all I have left to do. Do you people even read these afternotes, let alone care? I mean really, do you care at all? Never mind. I'm just tired. If there are any spelling mistakes, like missing 'i's, then that's because the 'i' button on my laptop is jammed. Sorry.  
  
Hey, go read Saiyan Girl's stories. They kick so much @ss that there's none left to kick. So yes, go read them. Now. And review. Please. Plllllleeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaasssssssssseeeeeeeee review Mine and Her stories.  
  
Please? 


	12. Warfare

Chapter 12: Warfare  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own Dragonball Z or any of the following characters, except Celeste. She's © me.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* ~*~*~  
  
Vegeta strolled at a leisurely pace through the woods, the darkness not hindering his sight in any way at  
  
all. He needed time to think about what had been going on lately, mainly Celeste. Even though she had  
  
been staying with them so long now, Vegeta still couldn't shake the feeling that Celeste was something to  
  
be feared. Bulma seemed slightly attached to her, as did Trunks, but Vegeta detached himself every time  
  
he felt the slightest pang of anything other than suspicion towards her.  
  
It would be (WILL be, he corrected himself) dangerous for them to get any closer to her, but what could  
  
he do? ::I can't kick her out, she doesn't have anywhere to go.:: He thought, lapsing into a moment of  
  
kindness. ::Wait, it wouldn't be my problem if she had no where to stay. It'd be hers.:: Vegeta smiled  
  
inwardly. ::Yes. When the sun rises, the girl goes.::  
  
~*~  
  
Celeste walked silently, following Vegeta. She had woken up in Trunks's bed and was unable to get back  
  
to sleep. Trunks seemed to have been having a nightmare, as his face was twisted into what seemed to be  
  
fear and he kept moving around. But as soon as Celeste had gotten up and moved away from him, he  
  
calmed down. She had taken a pair of jeans from his closet and slipped them on then gone out for a walk,  
  
only to run into Vegeta, who had had the same idea. He apparently didn't know she was following him  
  
through the shadows, watching him in silence. She wondered what was crossing his mind, as hers  
  
relinquished only the usual turmoil with a few select thoughts.  
  
::.wouldn't be my problem..:: Celeste paused. Where had that come from? The thought wasn't hers, so  
  
then..  
  
::When the sun rises.::  
  
Vegeta?  
  
::The girl goes.:: Oh Kami, he was thinking about her! She could hear his thoughts as clearly as if he had  
  
spoke them out loud, but no, he had said nothing, and as far as she knew, he was unaware of her presence.  
  
Was he planning to get rid of her? It sure as hell sounded like it. How could he? She had no where to stay,  
  
no money, nothing. ::But this is Vegeta. What would he care? That stonehearted bastard.:: Celeste  
  
thought, positively furious.  
  
But maybe she could convince him otherwise. Not with words of course. Celeste raised her hand, palm  
  
up, and clenched it into a fist. He doesn't listen to words. But pain, everyone listens to pain. Only  
  
problem was that she might not be strong enough to change his decision.  
  
Could she really do this? They had taken her in, even though they knew nothing about her, and she could  
  
offer no explanation to quench their string of questions. If she did win the oncoming battle, they might  
  
kick her out anyway.  
  
But if she didn't. She'd have no where to go. ::I lose either way. Any path I take, I get lost. No way out  
  
of these woods, not this time.:: Celeste felt her knees get a little weak. She stopped the trembling in her  
  
legs and stood tall.  
  
Might as well go out with a bang.  
  
~*~  
  
Vegeta and doubled back after reaching the clearing and was heading back towards the house, with dawn  
  
arriving in a mere half hour. He needed a bit more sleep, as he planned to start training again just after 7  
  
am. He had been forgetting to train with all the excitement. They needed to put an end to that scientist  
  
Trunks had talked about, but how could they do that if they weren't strong enough? ::Kami, This is all  
  
that stupid little girl's fault.:: Vegeta thought. ::If she hadn't come here.:: His thoughts were interrupted  
  
by a rustling in the bushes. A familiar feeing flashed through his mind, telling him who it was that hid  
  
there.  
  
"Ah, good. You're here Get out where I can see you, I've got something to say." Vegeta sneered. Celeste  
  
stepped slowly from the shadows of the brush and into the fading moonlight, wings folded loosely against  
  
her back, eyes squinted and glaring.  
  
"I already know what you're going to tell me, you heartless fuck. And I'm not leaving. I've got no where  
  
to go." She whispered, just loud enough for Vegeta to hear. He merely laughed.  
  
"You think you can oppose me? Feh. Think again." He turned around and started walking again. "You  
  
will leave, regardless." Celeste felt the anger rush through her and clenched her hands into fists, and  
  
gritted her teeth. Her whole body shuddered, and she lashed out with her fists at a tree. The thick trunk of  
  
the cedar snapped and the upper half fell back, smashing into another tree. Vegeta glanced back over his  
  
shoulder, pausing for a second. He smirked and looked forward again, noticing the red and gold hues that  
  
dyed the sky. Dawn had come.  
  
"Leave." He said and rose through the air, taking off. ::No!:: Celeste screamed inside her head. ::No! I'm  
  
supposed to fight him, and win! Then I can stay! No! Come back!::  
  
"Bastard!" She yelled, and rocketed up after him.  
  
~*~  
  
Trunks hovered above the treetops, scanning the landscape. Dawn had broken, making it all that much  
  
easier. He swiveled left, and a figure caught his eyes.  
  
The hair was a dead giveaway. Vegeta was flying towards home, a distance away from Trunks. His speed  
  
was leisurely. Suddenly a second figure shot up at a 45 degree angle out of the trees. The wings on it's  
  
back flapped madly, in an attempt to catch up with Vegeta. Vegeta, in turn, quickly rotated, and caught  
  
the other figure's fist as it flew up the his face.  
  
Only now Trunks realized it was Celeste who was attacking Vegeta.  
  
"Oh, shit."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* ~*~*~  
  
My apologies for the delay and the unusual shortness of this chapter. I am in need of time to think. Having recently joined Deviantart.com, I am also feeling an urge to produce for art along with updating my fan fiction. I'm currently playing with 2 or 3 plot lines, and am not quite sure which one to follow through with. Ah well, not really your problem now is it? Not unless you spend your days waiting for me to update, whether it be my art or writing. Must go now.  
  
- Siphyis Pendragon Deviantart sign-in name available upon request. (Q: Why did I not put it up here? A: I don't want you to feel obligated to look at my art.) 


	13. Vegeta's Mistake

Chapter 13: Vegeta's Mistake  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own Dragonball Z or any of the following characters, except Celeste. She is © Me.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* ~*~*~  
  
Vegeta caught Celeste's fist and dodged a kick that was aimed for his stomach. ::She doesn't have my  
  
experience, let alone my strength; she can't beat me! What the hell is she thinking?:: He swung around  
  
and caught her in the ribs with his foot. She let no sound that would prove her pain escape her mouth, and  
  
quickly retaliated with a punch in Vegeta's stomach. He backed up and fired a few blasts at her, which she  
  
deflected with her wings, sending them back at him. Vegeta dodged them easily enough. He made the  
  
mistake of watching them as they shot off, and turned back to see Celeste fly at him and send him reeling  
  
with a kick.  
  
"Lucky shot." He smirked, and sent a large blast at her. Celeste tried to block it with her wings again, but  
  
it was too strong and it tore right through, catching her in the chest and leaving a section of her wings in  
  
shreds. A large gash was visible just below her throat. It bled heavily, but she ignored it. She said nothing  
  
as she flew like lighting a Vegeta, pausing a mere foot from him and letting off a round of blasts.  
  
As she was, this took a lot out of her, and she was gasping for air. Vegeta, on the other hand, had not yet  
  
broken a sweat. He laughed now, at her pain, at her foolishness.  
  
"Child, give up before I kill you." He said, his mouth forever set as a triumphant grin.  
  
"Never." Came the cliché reply. Celeste could tell her energy stores were depleted and she couldn't keep  
  
fighting. Vegeta knew this also, which made it all that more fun. He did marvel at her determination,  
  
though.  
  
Celeste shot at Vegeta, fists ready. Vegeta started charging up a blast. She closed in, quickly destroying  
  
the distance between them, and Vegeta let go of the blast, sending it screaming towards her. Celeste  
  
stopped abruptly and was trying desperately to reverse her path, but momentum kept her going forward.  
  
She threw her arms in front of her, and prepared for the pain. She felt the searing heat of the blast fall  
  
upon her, but before the actual connection, something shoved her hard and painfully out of the way,  
  
causing her to lose concentration. She started to fall, with no energy left to stop herself with. Celeste could  
  
only watch as the ground rushed up to meet her.  
  
~*~  
  
Bulma woke alone. The clock read 6:43 am. There was no sound except for the occasional bird chirping.  
  
She stood up and grabbed some pants and a tee shirt out of the dresser and put them on. She walked out  
  
into the hallway and went to kitchen to start making breakfast for when Vegeta and Trunks came home.  
  
But before she could even open the refrigerator, she heard the door open and slam shut again. Vegeta  
  
walked in, followed by Trunks, who looked a little beat up.  
  
Trunks carried the unconscious Celeste, who looked much worse. Her shirt was torn, revealing a large  
  
blue and purple bruise on her side. Celeste's wings were torn badly, and a couple of her spikes were  
  
broken. Blood ran freely from a gash below her throat her mouth. But most definitely, the wound that  
  
stood out the most was the hole that obviously went right through her. Located below the rib cage and off  
  
to the side of her body, Bulma guessed that if Celeste was lucky, it would have missed any vital organs.  
  
Blood gushed from it, pouring out onto the linoleum floor, and the amount of it was astonishing. Celeste  
  
had most certainly lost a vital amount of blood, and her chest heaved up and down in attempts to continue  
  
breathing.  
  
"She fell." Trunks whispered, looking blankly at Bulma. ".Can you help her?" Bulma looked down  
  
from Trunks's emotionless stare to Celeste, then over to Vegeta, who was leaning against the wall, eyes  
  
closed. She knew that he thought she could save the girl, but with this situation, even Bulma doubted  
  
herself.  
  
~*~  
  
Blinding pain forced it's way into every nook and cranny of Celeste's body. Flash after flash of pain shook  
  
her with every breath, every heartbeat. Her mind screamed. If only it would end, if only the pain would  
  
stop. Death was welcome now, anything that could relieve her of this misery. But no, something forced  
  
Death back, away from her. Something denied her relief. ::Please! Oh Kami, stop the pain!:: She scream  
  
inwardly.  
  
Suddenly, the pain subsided. A cooling fluid rushed through her, numbing her to the pain. What once  
  
burned, was now frozen solid. It no longer hurt to breathe. ::Thank you.:: Celeste called.  
  
"She's stopped shaking. Her breathing's evened out. I think she's ok."  
  
"We're not out of the woods yet. Give her another shot."  
  
"You're sure? What if it's too much?"  
  
"It's not. Do it."  
  
Another flush of ice ran through her, feeling even better than the first. Celeste felt the energy rebuild itself  
  
in her, gaining momentum. She open her closed eyes slightly, and felt feeling return to her body. It was  
  
like surfacing out of a lake of numbness. She could feel the dried blood on her face being wiped away.  
  
Something else stirred inside her. The pain, though weakened, was still determined to kill her, and it  
  
rushed to the surface as well. But it lost it's speed, it was too weak now. She felt it only slightly.  
  
Focus did not come, and left only blurry shapes.. Someone leaned over her. Whoever it was just stood  
  
there, watching emerge from her lake. She moved her hand slightly. Pain flooded over her from the lost  
  
effort. Celeste let out a small whine of pain. The figure hovering over her laid their hand on top of hers,  
  
stilling the movement.  
  
"Don't move." It whispered, it's mouth right next to her ear. It's voice was sad and distressed, and she  
  
could feel the pain in it's mind. She stopped trying to move, and closed her eyes.  
  
"Try to sleep Celeste. You need rest." It was soothing, and Celeste agreed. She did need rest. Suddenly her  
  
body was racked with weariness. She let a sigh escape her lips, and sank into a dreamless sleep.  
  
~*~  
  
Trunks sat beside Celeste's bed where her unmoving form lay bandaged. She slept deeply. After Bulma  
  
had finished working on her, Trunks had carried her to her room and set her in the bed and had not left  
  
her side since. ::It's my fault, I shoved her out of the way and forgot to catch her.:: He thought sadly. He  
  
could hear Vegeta in the other room telling Bulma what had happened. Now Bulma was yelling  
  
something about how Celeste couldn't leave. Trunks looked at the wall that separated the rooms, trying to  
  
listen, then moved his eyes back to Celeste.  
  
Both her wings were bandaged, and her entire waist had been bandaged because of the hole in her side.  
  
Her head was wrapped in bandages also. The had found numerous cuts on her body. One of her arms were  
  
broken, but everything seemed to be healing quickly, except the hole.  
  
Trunks recalled the events in the purest of detail.  
  
~*~  
  
As soon as Trunks had shoved Celeste out of the line of fire, the blast had caught him, sending him flying.  
  
It was small, just enough to bruise him, but in Celeste's weak state it could have killed her. He had seen  
  
Celeste falling, and kept hoping that she would wake up and catch herself. But no, she had continued to  
  
fall. Right into the trees. When they found her, she had been impaled on sharp stick panted in the ground.  
  
Oh Kami, how he hated recalling that scene. Celeste's blood reflected his failure to protect her, and every  
  
time he thought about her still figure laying there, the wooden stake through her, the blood pooling and  
  
sinking into the ground, staining the dirt and grass, he felt like someone had impaled him.  
  
~*~  
  
Why hadn't he caught her? Why? Now she might die. So much blood had she lost, that the possibility of  
  
her death was very real. But she couldn't die. So many things were unknown about her. If she did die,  
  
who would they tell? What if she had family? They would never know.  
  
What about the dragonballs? Couldn't they just wish her back?  
  
No, something told him deep down that it wouldn't work. There was something different in her that  
  
would prevent her from being brought back.  
  
"Don't die." He whispered to her, even though she couldn't hear him. She continued to sleep. Her chest  
  
moved gently up and down in the shallow breathing the showed sleep.  
  
"Please don't die." He felt so small. He couldn't do anything. For once, he couldn't help. Trunks put his  
  
hand in his hands and just sat there, saying nothing, thinking nothing. Just waiting.  
  
~*~  
  
Bulma walked in at 1 pm to find Trunks sleeping on the floor next to Celeste's bed. Vegeta had gone to  
  
train two or three hours after they brought Celeste back. He had asked Trunks if he would come also, but  
  
Trunks had refused. ::And rightly so.:: Thought Bulma.  
  
The girl herself still slept also, but in a deeper way. Trunks sleep was visibly restless, as he was tossing  
  
and turning on the floor. He still wore the blood-stained jeans, which were a little singed. Bulma walked  
  
out and came back with a blanket that she spread over Trunks. She pulled back the covers on Celeste and  
  
undid the bandages wrapped around the girl's waist. The hole was no longer bleeding, but it was still open  
  
to infection. Bulma grabbed some antibiotics and a new bandage from her lab and redid Celeste's wound.  
  
The gash on Celeste's neck had healed nicely, but there was still a slight scar. The girl's healing factor  
  
was abnormal, and her cells were reproducing quickly to fix the hole and get rid of scar tissue.  
  
Celeste twitched as Bulma finished wrapping the bandage and tied it shut. She would be in pain for at  
  
least three days, until her body had repaired itself. Bulma pulled the blanket back over Celeste and threw  
  
the bloody bandage in the trash can at the door as she walked out.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* ~*~*~  
  
Blah. Enjoy some Angst. Please comment.  
  
- Siphyis Pendragon 


	14. Gear Shift

Chapter 14: Gear Shift  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own Dragonball Z or any of the following characters except Celeste. She's © Me.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* ~*~*~  
  
Celeste woke up to darkness and moonlight flooding the room. Her sides ached and it hurt to sit up, but  
  
she swung her legs over and stood up anyway. Taking a step forward, she caught her foot on Trunks's  
  
sleeping form. Celeste caught herself before she fell, hoping Trunks hadn't woken up. No, he stirred, but  
  
he didn't wake. Letting out a sigh of relief she sat down on a chair that stood in the middle of the  
  
room.  
  
Now, what to do? Celeste was up at. the clock showed 1:18 am. What could she do? She glanced around  
  
surveying her surroundings, remembering what had happened. Remembering Vegeta's blast,  
  
remembering Trunks pushing her aside, remembering.remembering the ground rushing towards her, the  
  
searing flash of pain that shot through her and red haze that flooded her mind before she blacked out.  
  
She reached back to scratch her neck and discovered her tightly bandaged wings. And now that she  
  
thought about it, they itched. BAD. Celeste tore the wrappings off, carelessly tossing them aside and  
  
standing up to stretch her wings. The itching faded, and she sighed with relief, regardless how much it  
  
hurt to breathe. Looking down at her chest and stomach straining against the blood stained bandages, she  
  
wondered how bad her injury really was. She found a loose end and unwound the wrappings to reveal  
  
a large bruise the size of a football and a slowly healing gash in the middle of it. A tiny trickle of blood  
  
flowed from the cut and over the purple and blue skin of Celeste's stomach.  
  
"Ew." She muttered to herself, using the already bloodied wrappings to gently wipe away the blood and  
  
then rewrapped it around her. A small gasp of pain escaped her when she accidentally pulled on the  
  
bandages, tightening them.  
  
Trunks made a funny groaning noise and sat up, rubbing his eyes.  
  
"Celeste?" He asked groggily. She finished wrapping the bandages and whispered: "Shh, go back to  
  
sleep." Trunks obeyed, seemingly uncaring. He flopped back onto his side and was asleep before his head  
  
hit the floor.  
  
A sudden craving hit Celeste. Dear Kami, was she hungry! She walked out of the room and made her way  
  
to the kitchen, where she soon emptied a good portion of the fridge.  
  
Her hunger satiated, Celeste wandered back to the room. Trunks still lay asleep on the floor, with the light  
  
blanket pulled up under his arms. He shifted, and the blanket fell down to expose his chest. Celeste sat  
  
down on the bed, staring at him, thinking. She started to hum a tune that she couldn't remember the  
  
origins of. It relaxed her somehow, and the tune itself felt peaceful, like the gentle moonlight streaming in  
  
through the window. Smiling and still humming, she laid down and watched Trunks sleep. He slept with  
  
all the innocence the she knew didn't lie within him. He'd been through to much to be innocent anymore.  
  
She knew about all the evil they had fought. The androids. Cell. Buu. All of them.  
  
How?  
  
She didn't know that. But no matter. 2 a.m. is no time for thinking. Time for sleep.  
  
Which is exactly what she did.  
  
~*~  
  
Bulma woke to Vegeta's snores. Kami, could that saiyan snore! It sounded like trucks shifting gears on  
  
the highway.  
  
She shoved him over to the edge of the bed, and got up to dress. While she pulled on her shirt, a nice  
  
robin's egg blue with a sleeping cat on the front, Vegeta stopped snoring and sat up. Rubbing his eyes  
  
sleepily, he walked to the kitchen in his boxers before realizing his state of undress. Making his way back  
  
to the bedroom, he stopped to check on Celeste, feeling (if any) the slightest pang of guilt.  
  
No, he decided. It's just hunger.  
  
Trunks lay on the floor, and Celeste was lying face-down on the bed. Her wings shifted and twitched,  
  
rustling the sheets and her tail was draped over the edge of the bed. Large scratches marked the entire  
  
bed, cause by Celeste's spikes and wings. Trunks was lying there on his back, the sheet Bulma had given  
  
him twisted into an obscene rope and wrapped around his waist and legs. Since they were both asleep,  
  
Vegeta made his way quietly out of the room and back to his and Bulma's room, where Bulma was just  
  
finishing making the bed.  
  
"They still sleeping?" Bulma asked, not bothering to look up at the Prince, who had taken out a red T-  
  
shirt and was slipping it on.  
  
"Yes, woman." He replied, pulling out a pair of blue jeans. He wondered why Bulma was laughing at him  
  
after he put them on. "What?" He snapped.  
  
"You. You've got them on backwards Veggie!" She snickered. Vegeta glanced down, and true enough,  
  
the back pockets rested on his hips. In a flash he had them off and back on correctly. He growled and  
  
stormed out of the room to the kitchen to await breakfast.  
  
Trunks entered the kitchen, still in his bloody jeans, which Vegeta told him to go change. Trunks  
  
stumbled back in and sat down, now dressed, and downed a cup of coffee. He yawned.  
  
"G'morning."  
  
Vegeta only stared at the purple-haired saiyan and sipped his cup of coffee, barely taking notice of the  
  
dark shadows underlining Trunks eyes.  
  
"Trunks, can I borrow some clothes?" Came Celeste's voice from down the hall.  
  
"Yeah." Trunk called weakly.  
  
"WHAT?" She yelled.  
  
"Yeah." Trunks replied, a little louder, but it wasn't enough.  
  
"WHAT?! I CAN'T HEAR YOU!"  
  
"HE SAID YES YOU PATHETIC CHILD!" Vegeta yelled angrily, becoming tired of their little game. He  
  
heard Celeste say something back, but it was too quiet to be heard clearly.  
  
"Same to you." Vegeta mumbled to himself.  
  
THUNK.  
  
He glanced over to find Trunks face-down on the table, regardless of the empty of coffee. It should have  
  
woken him up, but no, here he was snoring into his own drool.  
  
Celeste walked in adjusting a t-shirt of Trunks's and wearing Trunks's baggy pants that had a large  
  
rip in the left knee. Her wings and spikes had been pulled in to accommodate for Trunks's clothing.  
  
"What's for bre- Holy crap! Trunks!" She ran to Trunks shook his shoulders.  
  
"Calm down, he's just sleeping." Celeste blushed with embarrassment as she realized this was true and  
  
stuck out her tongue out at Vegeta. He ignored the girl and sipped his coffee again.  
  
"Wow, he must be really drained." Celeste commented.  
  
"Brilliant deduction, Holmes." Vegeta smirked, to which Celeste merely rolled her eyes. She lifted  
  
Trunks's head and called his name. His eyes fluttered.  
  
"Ce. Celeste?" He whispered wearily.  
  
"Hey, you alright?" She said.  
  
"Dunno. I. really tired. n'sleep." His eyes closed again and he didn't object when Celeste set his  
  
head back down on the table. She slipped her arm around him and hoisted him up so that most of his  
  
weight was on her and walked him to the living room where he fell onto the couch for a merciful nap.  
  
Celeste went back to the kitchen and poured herself some orange juice just as Bulma walked into the  
  
room.  
  
"Why is Trunks sleeping on the couch? Didn't he get enough rest?" She asked, switching on the stove to  
  
make breakfast.  
  
"Guess not." Celeste answered. Vegeta looked at Celeste oddly, and she returned his gaze. "What?"  
  
"Show us your wound, child." He demanded.  
  
"Why?"  
  
"Just do it."  
  
Celeste sighed and reluctantly lifted Trunks's shirt to exposed a bruise not much bigger than a baseball.  
  
The cut itself was healed, leaving the faintest of scars. Bulma gasped, amazed.  
  
"Celeste! It healed so fast!"  
  
"Really?" Celeste said, poking the bruise. "I guess. It still hurts though."  
  
"The fact that it healed practically overnight, LITERALLY overnight, is amazing, let alone that chance  
  
that you could have died from that injury. But how? How did it heal so fast? Not even Vegeta or Goku  
  
heal that fast." Bulma said, cracking some eggs and scrambling them in a frying pan.  
  
"Oh. Cool." Celeste said, taking another swig of orange juice.  
  
"What about your wings?" Bulma continued.  
  
"What about them?"  
  
"Are they okay?"  
  
"Oh! Yeah, they're fine. Stronger than before if I do say so."  
  
"Good." Bulma said, going back to the eggs and starting on some pancakes, bacon and french toast for  
  
Vegeta, and a grapefruit for her. "Hungry?"  
  
"Extremely." Vegeta said.  
  
"Not you Veggie! I already started your breakfast. I'm asking Celeste."  
  
"Uh. No, it's ok. But thanks anyway." Celeste said.  
  
"I'll haf sumfin." Came a weary voice from the living room.  
  
"What do you want Trunks?" Bulma asked.  
  
"Any fin."  
  
"Ok, go back to sleep."  
  
"Seep."  
  
Celeste raised an eyebrow. That would have been an ordinary conversation, if Trunks had bothered to  
  
remove his face from the couch cushions.  
  
An hour later Bulma had finished cooking the enormous breakfast, and Trunks had managed to stumble  
  
into the kitchen and seat himself at the table.  
  
"Trunks, you're really wiped out. Are you sure you're okay? Trunks?" Bulma asked as she set down a  
  
heaping plate of food in front of him, but no answer except the occansional snore.  
  
"Trunks!" Bulma said, shaking him.  
  
"I'm up." He said, speaking into his arms. Lifting his head enough so that his eyes were visible, he  
  
reached for the fork sitting beside his plate and took a bite of pancakes.  
  
"Trunks, go back to bed if you're still tired. Before you fall asleep in your food." Bulma told him.  
  
"Yeah. good idea." He set his fork down and stood up then left the room. Celeste heard his bed squeak  
  
signaling his collapse.  
  
"Hmmm. He got as much, if not more, sleep than I did, and I'm wide awake. Odd." Celeste spoke her  
  
thoughts out loud.  
  
::It's like Androids 19 and 20, they way they sapped others' energy.:: The thought popped into Vegeta's  
  
head unexpectedly.  
  
Vegeta noticed Celeste stand up, leaving half a glass of orange juice on the table. Having finished his breakfast and not being one to waste, he reached over a downed the rest of her drink.  
  
~*~  
  
Celeste walked into Trunks's room and looked down at his unmoving form. He hadn't even bothered to  
  
slide under the blankets, so She grabbed one that had been laying on the floor and spread it over him. She  
  
brushed a few loose strands of hair out of his face, and his whole body shuddered as she touched him. A  
  
tingly feeling ran over her stomach right after his slight convulsion. Lifting her shirt and looking down,  
  
she saw some little reddish sparks playing over her bruise. She hadn't lifted her hand from Trunks's face,  
  
but she didn't notice until Trunks shuddered again. But instead of removing her hand, Celeste continued  
  
to watch the little flashes.  
  
When they finally stopped, the bruise had gone, along with the scar. There wasn't even a mark! Trunks  
  
stopped shaking as soon as the sparks stopped. His breathing had sped up, and Celeste could see the beads  
  
of sweat breaking out on his forehead.  
  
"Oh Kami! He's got a fever!" Celeste said. Placing her hand on his forehead confirmed that thought. She  
  
raced out and got Bulma so she could see.  
  
"Is he gonna be okay?" Celeste asked, worried.  
  
"The fever is pretty severe, and all his strength has been sapped somehow, leaving his body with no  
  
energy to fight it. It doesn't look good. We can only hope the fever breaks."  
  
"No. don't go. don't." Trunks mumbled, his teeth clenched and unclenched. "Don't! No. don't go."  
  
"He's hallucinating." Bulma observed. "It's the fever. Wait here, while I get him some more medicine."  
  
And she left the room, leaving Celeste to sit by Trunks's bedside, waiting for to heal or die, whichever  
  
came first.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* ~*~*~  
  
Would've had the chapter up sooner, but I had to work. Sorry. But hey, at least this one's 6 pages instead of the usual 5. Don't ask what the chapter title means, it was just the first thing to pop into my head when I looked over what I had written. But now, must sleep. Goodnight.  
  
Oh, and please review.  
- Siphyis Pendragon 


	15. Sleep Eludes the Weary

Chapter 15: Sleep Eludes the Weary  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own Dragonball Z or any of the following characters, except Celeste. She's © Me.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* ~*~*~  
  
Again, Trunks was plunged into the dream world.  
  
+| He was inside the encasing and outside it at the same time.  
  
Trunks gazed upon himself, upon the girl-child, floating in the tank, tubes and wires stuck to every  
  
portion of her, his, body.  
  
He looked back at himself from inside the tank, viewing the still figure who did not have the power to  
  
help him. Her.  
  
Who was he?  
  
The door creaked and Trunks turned around to greet the intruder, coming face-to-face with a mere  
  
shadow. Who's shadow? He didn't know; neither of them did. The face wasn't shown. But he knew, they  
  
knew, it wasn't someone who meant them any good.  
  
It pushed some buttons, turned some dials, then checked a screen near the tank before pulling a bright red  
  
lever. The fluid in the tank changed to a soft pinkish hue and drained out. Large mechanical arms caught  
  
the child and a metal bed unfolded from the wall. The arms lowered her onto the table and connected a  
  
few more tubes and wires to him. Fluid rushed through the tubes and Trunks's whole body shook as fire  
  
flooded his veins and metal clamps came out of the metal table to hold him down.  
  
The fire remained even after the wires and tubes were removed and a blue liquid slowly rose in the tank.  
  
The figure watched the whole process and nodded it's (Trunks guessed) approval. It typed more  
  
information into the computers and a mechanical voice said "Phase One Completed. Phase Two is  
  
Ongoing." It then left, leaving Trunks with his, her, fire-filled veins.  
  
But the burning faded as a sudden weariness overcame him and blacked out his vision. |+  
  
~*~  
  
Meanwhile.  
  
+| Black.  
  
Just black.  
  
There was nothing, but then, a light clicked on, dangling over Celeste, creating the circle of light around  
  
her, overshadowing her face. She looked around, and noticed something crawling into her light. A red  
  
liquid crept into the bright yellowish light. Celeste nearly threw up.  
  
Blood. Oh Kami. Who's blood?  
  
Another light, a good 10 feet from her, clicked on, revealing the thing that she desperately longed for.  
  
Trunks. Trunks stood there in saiyan armor, his head down. Celeste couldn't see his eyes.  
  
But something was wrong. Oh Kami, it was his blood. It was Trunks's blood!  
  
"Trunks!" She called, finally seeing the large bloody hole located over Trunks's heart. Blood streamed  
  
down his chest and over the armor.  
  
She fell to her knees, landing in the blood that pooled around her. Her hands flew to her face as she cried,  
  
and when she removed them, they were stained with the abundant liquid. The blood covered her hands,  
  
and she looked up to Trunks. He raised his head, revealing accusing eyes. And she knew, Oh Kami, she  
  
knew, she had done this to him.  
  
His light clicked off, leaving her in the blood and darkness, crying for her sins. |+  
  
~*~  
  
Celeste woke to find Trunks awake and sitting up, looking out the window. The sky had darkened, and  
  
clock read 9:47 pm.  
  
She must have fallen asleep.  
  
Trunks looked over at her, and smiled when he noticed she was awake.  
  
"Trunks!" Celeste cried. She jumped on the bed and hugged him tightly, tears streaming down her cheeks.  
  
"Oh Trunks, I thought you died! I thought you died." Trunks looked down her, realizing how vulnerable  
  
she looked. Like a child. He wrapped his arms around and tried to calm her. Sobs wracked her body, and  
  
she kept saying "I'm sorry" over and over again.  
  
"It's ok, Celeste, I'm ok. I just needed some sleep. It's ok." He told her.  
  
"No! I dreamed, I dreamed you died. I killed you. Your blood was everywhere. I was so scared. Oh  
  
Trunks, I'm sorry. I'm sorry." She started crying again.  
  
"Celeste, I -" Trunks started to say something, but then, a bolt of lighting illuminated the room, and the  
  
lamp beside the bed went out, along with the digital clock and the hallway lights.  
  
"Oh Kami. Oh Kami. Trunks? Trunks, I don't like the dark." Celeste whispered. This seemed odd to  
  
Trunks, seeing as she had the tendency to escape outside in the middle of the night.  
  
"No moon. Where's the moon?" She whispered again, and Trunks held her tighter.  
  
"It's just clouds, Celeste. The moon will be back soon." He told her. He let go of her to adjust his position  
  
and felt her blindly groping for him in the dark. He reached out and caught her wrist, and manage to sit  
  
cross-legged amidst the ruffled sheets and pillows. Celeste climbed into his lap and rested her head  
  
against his chest. He wrapped his arms around her again.  
  
"I had no parents. All I ever had was the moon." Celeste mumbled, barely audible, but Trunks caught it  
  
anyway.  
  
"You had no parents Celeste? Who raised you? Did they die? Celeste?" Trunks asked, trying not to show  
  
his excitement and merely trying to sound interested and concerned. He really wanted to know where this  
  
child had come from.  
  
But no, not tonight. Celeste was already asleep in his arms.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* ~*~*~  
  
Not really a chapter. Sort of an in between thing. Am tired.  
  
This chapter does mean things, and it is important, but it's mainly to tide over whoever actually reads my  
  
little item here until I get a another chapter up.  
  
Please don't read too far into this; I'm not suicidal or depressed or anything. Just tired. I got a job, just  
  
turned 14 and school is out. What's to be depressed about?  
  
-Siphyis Pendragon 


	16. Blackout

Chapter 16: Blackout  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own Dragonball Z or any of the following characters except Celeste. She is © me.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* ~*~*~  
  
Vegeta punched and kicked the air in the Gravity Room. Training at night allowed him solitude and less  
  
distractions. Nothing occupied his mind, except the routine techniques.  
  
The screen read 400 times Earth's gravity, but suddenly it flickered and went dead, along with the  
  
lighting. The gravity was reduced also, making Vegeta feel lighter. This, of course, did not deter him. He  
  
continued, in the dark, until the emergency backup kicked in to increase the gravity and turn on the light.  
  
~*~  
  
Celeste woke in mid-darkness, draped across Trunks and holding him tightly. She was turned so that she  
  
could she out the darkened window (which yielded nothing but the pitch black she witnessed earlier) but a  
  
slight glow came from behind her. Not moving anything except her head, she turned to see the hallway  
  
light was on. ::Emergency generators.:: Celeste concluded. She adjusted herself again to look at Trunks,  
  
but couldn't see his face.  
  
Sitting up provided a better view indefinitely. The yellowish glow from the hallway played on his purple  
  
hair and smooth skin. It was wonderful to behold, and Celeste willed Trunks to continue sleeping when he  
  
shifted. She willed time to stop, if only so she could watch Trunks sleep for eternity.  
  
But no, his eyelid rose and he gazed upon her face, the light giving her pitch eyes an eerie glow and her  
  
dark hair an unnatural, but nonetheless beautiful sheen. He smiled gently as her tail brushed his chest and  
  
she laid down beside him again. She spread an arm over his bare chest and shut her eyes as he slid his  
  
arm around her. Not a word was spoken.  
  
And as wonderful the situation was, sleep came fast for both of them.  
  
~*~  
  
Bulma stood at the window, wrapped in a thin housecoat watching Vegeta train. She had put the large  
  
window in the Gravity room despite his objections, and she loved to be able to watch him train. It was one  
  
way so that Bulma could see him but Vegeta couldn't see her. He showed off occasionally when he knew  
  
she was there, even if he didn't think it was showing off. Vegeta smiled inwardly, glad to have an  
  
audience, but not telling himself that. Bulma smiled freely, glad to be an audience.  
  
~*~  
  
Trunks stumbled groggily into the bathroom, rubbing his eyes. He groped madly for a hair brush or comb,  
  
something to fix the purple spikes he bore. He found a tooth brush first, but when unscrewing the cap on  
  
the toothpaste tube, a loud scream struck his ears. Now fully awake he twisted around to see Celeste naked  
  
except for panties and clutching her bra to her chest. Red instantly flooded Trunks's face and only  
  
dissolved after he ran out of the bathroom bearing a large slap mark.  
  
He rubbed his sore face and frowned, but inside he grinned as he reviewed what he just saw, even if  
  
Celeste was yelling obscenities through the bathroom door at him.  
  
"I was ABOUT to shower, asshole! Dammit!" she shouted.  
  
"Uh, um s-sorry, sorry!" Trunks apologized. He leaned against the door and felt Celeste leaning on the  
  
other side as well.  
  
"I don't think sorry will erase the half-naked image of me from your mind, will it?"  
  
"Uh, no, I guess not." He smiled sheepishly.  
  
"I know your smiling. Stop thinking about me like that!"  
  
"I can't help it! You, you have a very nice b-body.." He stammered.  
  
"Um, thanks." She blushed. "I have to shower."  
  
"Oh, ok. Yeah." He felt he weight lift from the door, and couldn't help but think about her showering.  
  
Even though he was part saiyan, he still had a human teenager's hormones!  
  
~*~  
  
Celeste had finished showering and was in a fresh set of underwear rooting through Trunks's clothes,  
  
looking for something to wear. Of course, Trunks was banned from the room at that point, regardless of  
  
ownership.  
  
::There's a half-naked girl in my room and I'm not there!:: Trunks sulked, leaning beside the door. He  
  
reached over and opened it a crack and felt the vibration as Celeste slammed the door with her foot.  
  
"I told you to stay out while I'm changing." She said casually.  
  
"Feh." Replied Trunks.  
  
Celeste pulled out some baggy green pants and a faded blue T-shirt with the name of a band that she had  
  
never heard of. She assumed it was a band, anyway.  
  
Trunks grumbled as she exited his room, adjusting the old shirt.  
  
"May *I* change now?" He asked.  
  
"Yes you may." replied Celeste, sticking her tongue out at him. She sauntered down the hall into the  
  
kitchen for breakfast and poured herself a bowl of cereal. Trunks followed soon after, dressed in loose  
  
jeans and a tight red muscle shirt. He proceeded to scarf down an already- made breakfast, cooked by  
  
Bulma, and was watched by Celeste.  
  
He swallowed his current mouthful and stared back, looking deep into the dark eyes. She leaned forward a  
  
bit, but Trunks remained where he was. Was she going to kiss him? She sat back.  
  
"What was that about?" Trunks asked.  
  
"You've got a bit of pancake and syrup on your face."  
  
"Oh." A napkin proved useful in removing the food. Celeste got up and dumped her bowl and spoon in  
  
the sink, while Trunks poked the remains of his breakfast with his fork.  
  
"You wanna spar sometime, Celeste?"  
  
"Spar?"  
  
"Yeah, you know, fight? Just for practice."  
  
"Oh. Sure, why not? Uh, got something a little more suitable for training that I could wear? Fighting you  
  
will be hard enough without these pants getting in the way." She said, gesturing to the baggy green  
  
pants.  
  
"Oh sure!" He got up and went down to his parents room, grabbing one of Vegeta's old blue spandex  
  
outfits that Bulma had saved. He returned to the kitchen and tossed it to Celeste. "Try this on. I'll change  
  
into my own." Celeste went into the bathroom since Trunks beat her to his room.  
  
The spandex fit rather nicely. The armor didn't fit though, as it was not built for a woman's chest. She  
  
had to rip a hole for her tail and figured her spikes and wings would make they're own if needed. The  
  
outfit hugged her body, providing cover while still allowing for movement. Celeste did a few twists and  
  
turns to check it out, and she loved it.  
  
She exited the bathroom the same time as Trunks left his room, wearing a darker version of hers but as a  
  
two-piece.  
  
"Where's the chest arm- Oh!" He blushed, realizing. "Wait, I think Bulma made a female version of the  
  
armor. One sec!" He flew off, and returned with armor that had been adjusted to accommodate a woman's  
  
figure. Celeste slipped it on and couldn't help but notice how she could barely feel it.  
  
"Shall we then?" Celeste laughed. She took off down the hallway and out the back door into the yard.  
  
Trunks shot out after her, ramming right into her and causing the both of them the crash and roll. Celeste,  
  
stopping on her back, kicked upwards and sent Trunks flying. She jumped up and shot at him, but he was  
  
one step ahead and kicked her in the side then punched her in the gut. She gasped, gripping his fist.  
  
"Don't tell me you're already done, Celeste!" Trunks laughed. Celeste spit out a bit of blood and wiped  
  
her mouth.  
  
"Hardly." She grinned and used Trunks's own weight to flip him over her and throw him into the ground.  
  
He laughed up from his crater then shot up at her. A foot away from her he disappeared and reappeared  
  
behind her and slammed his fist into her back. ::Shit!:: Celeste thought. ::That hurt!:: But she still grinned  
  
evilly and returned the blow. Blow after blow struck, and eventually they started to wear down. Celeste  
  
only survived by dodging Trunks's blows and conserving as much energy as possible.  
  
Celeste shot off towards the house and Trunks followed. She looked back to check on him, and rammed  
  
straight into a tree. She collapsed to the bottom of it, but couldn't bring herself to stand even when the tree  
  
started creaking and snapping.  
  
Trunks saw the tree falling and increased his speed, grabbing Celeste just in time and rolling along the  
  
ground. They stopped with Celeste lying on the ground and Trunks on top of her with his arms wrapped  
  
around her. He propped himself up on one arm and rubbed his head. He looked down as Celeste opened  
  
her eyes and stared up at him. They stared at each other for a mere second, they Celeste reached up and  
  
kissed him hard on the lips. He opened his eyes wide, then shut them. He fell down onto her, both of them  
  
only stopping for oxygen. Celeste pulled off Trunks's armor and spandex shirt, and could tell he was  
  
fighting with her armor while trying not to break their embrace. He finally pulled it up over her head and  
  
off her and started working on her suit, when for the second time that morning a scream ripped through  
  
his ears.  
  
"CHILD! GET OFF HER NOW!" roared Vegeta. Trunks's stopped fiddling with Celeste's suit and pulled  
  
away, gasping. Celeste sat up and joined Trunks in a frantic explanation, that made no sense whatsoever  
  
and was mainly comprised of 'uh's and 'um's and the occansional 'but we weren't doing anything'.  
  
Trunks could nearly see the steam pouring from Vegeta's ears and began sweating a lot more then before.  
  
"Trunks. Room. NOW!" He said through clenched teeth. Trunks looked at Celeste longingly, as she fixed  
  
her armor and returned his gaze. He got up and walked into the house. Vegeta glared hatefully at Celeste,  
  
the followed Trunks inside, slamming the door behind him.  
  
Celeste sat not far from the fallen tree, and silent tears poured down her face. What now?  
  
~*~  
  
Vegeta yelled at Trunks. Viciously and continually. It was expected, of course. They had not been far from  
  
unprotected sex. Vegeta shouted at him as Trunks sat on the bed, head down. The obvious stuff came his  
  
way, like the subject of lack of protection and pregnancy, plus age. It was followed by not-so-obvious stuff,  
  
like why it was better to be inside and not in broad daylight for everyone to see.  
  
Most of it fell on deaf ears. Trunks knew what he had done, and didn't regret it. He regretted, however,  
  
the fact that now Vegeta had grounds to throw Celeste out. But he couldn't let that happen.  
  
~*~  
  
Bulma held Celeste, who was crying. They sat in Celeste's room, with Bulma trying to comfort the child.  
  
"Shh, Celeste, it's ok. It's ok." Bulma whispered. Celeste's sobs slowed, then stopped. "Now tell me what  
  
happened." Bulma already knew about the near-sex part, thanks to Vegeta.  
  
"We, we were sparring and-and then." She started crying again.  
  
"Celeste, shh, it's ok now! Celeste! What happened? Did Trunks-" Bulma paused to gulp, bracing herself  
  
just incase. "Did Trunks force you?"  
  
Celeste stopped crying, but kept her head down. "No, Trunks would never do that." She ran a spandex  
  
clothed arm across her eyes. "I kissed him first. It's my fault we almost. did it." A sob shook her, but she  
  
sucked it back in.  
  
"Aw, Celeste. It's fine, really! Everything's okay now, but if you and Trunks decided to actually do it,  
  
make sure you have protection then. Ok?"  
  
Celeste looked up at her, astonished. The woman was so understanding, offering not only forgiveness but  
  
advice! Even now, while she could hear Vegeta screaming at Trunks for something *she* had done.  
  
"I need to see Trunks!" Celeste got up, and Bulma followed suit, but she stopped Celeste before she could  
  
leave.  
  
"It's better to let Vegeta chew him out first. When Vegeta gets mad, he can hurt people. And he's really  
  
mad." Bulma told her.  
  
"I don't care." Celeste mumbled, storming down the hall and into Trunks's bedroom in time to see Vegeta  
  
yell "Answer me!" and brutally hit Trunks into the wall. A bit of blood sprayed out of Trunks's mouth and  
  
misted on the wall, alongside the crack caused by Trunks's head.  
  
"No! Trunks!" Celeste yelled, and jumped to catch Trunks as he fell forward. She caught him, and helped  
  
him into a laying position on the bed. Blood leaked from his mouth and a gash on his head, staining the  
  
sheets. Celeste glared at Vegeta, but he merely turned around and left. Celeste went to the bathroom and  
  
found an extensive first-aid kit and immediately tended to Trunks, cleaning his wounds and bandaging his  
  
head.  
  
Bulma eventually came in to check on Trunks, but she found both him and Celeste fast asleep on Trunks's  
  
bed, Celeste protectively clutching him. Bulma left the two alone, confident in Celeste's first-aid and not  
  
feeling that he needed any more attention.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* ~*~*~  
  
I just shot the maturity rating on this story up a notch.  
  
I haven't even hit climax on this damn fanfic yet. So. if you're waiting for it to end so I can tie up all  
  
those loose ends I left dangling, sucks to be you. If you don't want it to end, well sucks to be you to  
  
because it will eventually. Ah well. Please review. And no flames, if you don't mind. I got one of those.  
  
Just one, luckily. And sent to my email for me to read personally. Yippee.  
  
It's 4 am. Did you know that?  
  
- Siphyis Pendragon 


	17. The Unnamed Chapter

Chapter 17:  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own Dragonball Z, or any of the following characters. Except Celeste, of course.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* ~*~*~  
  
Vegeta laughed to himself. Oh, this was too perfect! Now he had the most reasonable excuse to throw that  
  
pathetic half-breed out on her ass. Then things could get back to normal. That stupid little girl had  
  
screwed everything up! She had broken into his life and smashed the fixed pieces back to shards.  
  
And yet, he felt a sort of fatherly attraction to her. Bulma enjoyed having another female around,  
  
regardless of the species. Trunks-  
  
Trunks obviously felt an attraction to her too, although in a much different sense.  
  
The kitchen had proved an awesome recluse from the current excitement, and the perfect place to think in  
  
silence.  
  
~*~  
  
Sleep came, but did not stay and Celeste soon woke from the fitful rest. Trunks had woken too, but he  
  
hadn't bothered to get up, and remained on the bed. She noticed one of his cheeks was bruised.  
  
"Trunks?" She whispered. He didn't move, and still laid with his back to her. "Trunks, are you ok?"  
  
"It's just a bruise." He replied slowly, and his words were heavy. She draped her tail around his waist, and  
  
he stroked it gently, then put his hand back down. "He's going to make you leave, you know."  
  
"I know." Celeste sighed.  
  
"Mother wont be able to stop him this time."  
  
"I'll be alright."  
  
Trunks turned over and looked at her. "But-"  
  
"I'll be fine, Trunks. You don't have to worry about me." She smiled, but it was weak. There was a long  
  
pause between them. Trunks wanted to ask her about her past for some reason, but he couldn't bring  
  
himself to do it. He moved forward and kissed her, and she kissed back. They broke apart and Celeste sat  
  
up.  
  
"I'll come back someday. So it won't be forever." She looked out the window. Trunks got up and moved  
  
closer to her.  
  
"I'll miss you though. Promise you'll come back?" He told her.  
  
She turned and looked deep into his eyes, and his eyes gazed back. "Promise."  
  
They both smiled.  
  
~*~  
  
"Please don't make her leave, Vegeta!" Bulma asked. "She has no where to go!" Vegeta merely laughed.  
  
"You know what happened. How can you still want her to stay? I SAW them and the image still burns my  
  
eyes every time I think about it."  
  
"But she has no money! No supplies of any kind! How will she live?"  
  
"Not my problem. She leaves. Today."  
  
"Please, Vegeta-"  
  
"No."  
  
"But-"  
  
"No. And that's final." He walked calmly out of the kitchen. Bulma sat down at the table and put her head  
  
in her hands. After a moment she raised her head and looked around the kitchen, as if looking for help.  
  
A picture on the counter caught her eye and a light blinked on in her head.  
  
Perfect.  
  
~*~  
  
Celeste sat in the forest, legs clutched to her chest and tail wrapped around her feet. Tears streamed freely  
  
down her face. She raised her head at a strange -fwoosh- sound from in front of her. A familiar shadowy  
  
figure stood in front of her, anger emanating from it so strongly that she could almost taste it.  
  
"Goddammit, child! You have forgotten what your mission is! And now you've gone and fucked every  
  
thing up. I knew I should've removed more human genes. Fuck. Fuck!" It swore.  
  
NOW she remembered. She'd seen it before. Her mission- it had mentioned that too. It seemed a lot less  
  
mysterious now that it had let it's anger loose.  
  
"Get up! Now! We're going to have to give your mind a little 'jolt'. Hold still." It moved forward, pulling  
  
what looked like a mix of a gun and a needle. Celeste tried to run, but found fear had paralyzed her body.  
  
The figure stuck out a hand in her direction.  
  
"I said GET UP."  
  
An invisible force pulled her upwards and set her on her feet, but she could still not run. It moved closer  
  
and pulled out one of her arms, jabbing the needle end of the gun into her vein. And holy CRAP it hurt! It  
  
shot a blue liquid into her arm and she could feel it travel through her body, and her skip a beat. It went  
  
directly to her brain, and suddenly she remembered. Oh Kami, her mission! But no, she couldn't, she was  
  
happy here, she didn't want to, she couldn't betray them.  
  
"Oh fuck. It's those damn human genes again. Fucking emotions and fucking feelings and goddamn  
  
fucking conscience. Goddammit!"  
  
She felt to her knees, gripping her head, remembering everything. How he took her. The experiments. The  
  
transfusions. The PAIN.  
  
Suddenly, it all receded towards the back of her mind. She couldn't remember anymore. It was there, she  
  
could feel it, it was right on the tip of her tongue, but she couldn't reach it. Celeste stood up, shaking her  
  
head.  
  
"W-what was that? I. I can't remember." Celeste mumbled.  
  
"Oh, and that would be the goddamn saiyan genes kicking in now, wouldn't it? Mixing with the human  
  
and fighting for the misconception of good. Fuck!" The figure shouted sarcastically. "Oh goddammit.  
  
Forget it. Forget it! I'll be back later. Make the damn stuff stronger. Ok- uh, one sec, um," It's voice took  
  
on a mesmerizing tone. "Forget what you saw. Sleep now."  
  
~*~  
  
Celeste woke in her room, with Bulma just entering.  
  
"You awake? I need to talk with you." She sat down on the end of the bed as Celeste propped herself up  
  
on one arm, rubbing her eyes with the other. "You see, Vegeta is going to kick you out."  
  
Celeste nodded. She already knew that.  
  
"But I have a plan. I'm going to send you to live with Goku and his family- "  
  
"Goku? Kakarot?" Celeste asked.  
  
"Uh-" Bulma looked at her. "Yeah. How'd you know that? Nevermind. Anyway, you need to pack  
  
anything you want to take. I'll give you some of my clothes, and Trunks said you could have some of his.  
  
I'll give you some money too. But you can't let Vegeta know! He thinks we're going to leave you alone in  
  
the forest to die or something. Now, we need to go over the path to Goku's house. First, head-"  
  
"I know how to get there."  
  
"I'm not going to ask anymore. Here," Bulma took a capsule out of her pocket. "Pack your clothes in this.  
  
Just-"  
  
"I know."  
  
"Oh, well, good. I'll leave you to it then. We leave first thing in the morning, or at least, you and Vegeta  
  
do. We'll keep in touch with Goku to see how you're doing, so don't worry about that. Well, ok. Don't be  
  
afraid to ask Trunks for some clothes if you don't like mine." Bulma left, leaving Celeste staring at the  
  
capsule on her bed.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* ~*~*~  
  
Fuck it. I quit.  
  
For tonight anyway.  
  
- Siphyis Pendragon 


	18. This is not a Chapter, but please read

An announcement from Siphyis-  
  
I am pausing the story for a bit, seeing as 1. I have an idea for a short (non-fanfiction) story that I would like to work on, and 2. I am leaving on vacation for3 and a half weeks. I will have my laptop for a short portion of the vacation, but I don't think I will be working on my fanfiction so much as it's plot, which took a rather sharp turn from the road I gave it recently. So now I have to reroute the path to get to the destination. Now, I must pack. My apologies to the readers. If you have nothing to read, I will shamelessly plug Saiyan Girl and her stories because she is awesome and has been very supportive to me and my fanfic. Now go read her stories. I command you! Have a nice summer, and I love all of you who review. Those who don't, you don't deserve my love! I'm kidding.  
  
- Siphyis Pendragon 


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